Kettering's New Vehicle Durability Lab Will Shake Things Up
Kettering University's new Vehicle Durability and Integration Lab -- commonly referred to as the "Shaker Lab" -- is designed to put mechanical and electrical vehicles and components to the test by shaking them. The facility includes shaker and data collection equipment.
"Currently we can test half a passenger vehicle and all sub-systems and components such as powertrains and suspensions," said Mohamed El-Sayed, a professor of mechanical engineering at Kettering. "We can also test new components in development," El-Sayed added, such as those used in hybrid and electrical vehicles.
The lab, which is almost completed in Kettering's C.S. Mott Engineering and Science Center, will have battery testing equipment, vibration measuring equipment, materials testing equipment and a vehicle assembly and disassembly area, enabling durability testing on full passenger vehicles or a bus powertrain.
"Hybrid and electric vehicles have alternative, heavily electrical-based powertrains that present new challenges in durability compared to traditional, mechanical powertrain systems," said El-Sayed. "Our Shaker Lab is designed for testing powertrains that are both mechanical and electrical. When there is a high voltage battery running under severe mechanical stresses, there is a lot to consider."
El-Sayed is also in discussion with a battery company about performing durability testing on their components.
Durability testing includes road load data acquisition, addressing vibration issues, materials testing and development, vehicle dynamics and overall vehicle performance.
The Shaker Lab does durability testing of components before they are put on the buses.
"In 2005 we created a plan for researching and developing hybrid systems for mass transportation vehicles in collaboration with the Flint Mass Transit Authority, and I started to work on the grant with Michigan State University," said El-Sayed. "MSU built a dynamometer to accommodate heavy duty powertrains and we built the Shaker Lab for integration and durability testing."
El-Sayed said Kettering students will benefit from having a durability testing facility on campus. Those working in the field of automotive body design deal with durability issues or have thesis projects related to durability issues, he noted. Having a facility such as the Shaker Lab will enable students to learn marketable durability testing processes and protocols. Additionally, Kettering SAE International competition teams, including the Formula Racing team, Mini Baja team and Clean Snowmobile Challenge team, have to focus on durability and performance as part of the requirements for competition.
