Fender Design - Wheel Arch Challenge

WHEEL ARCH

The wheel arch is the semi-circular part of the fender positioned above the wheel of the vehicle.

the design of the wheel arch of a fender should be such that it must shield wheels and protect both passengers compartment and pedestrians from the projection of water mud and stones.

For the vehicle to have its use permit in different countries the wheel arch of fenders must fulfill the requirement of standards and regulations set by respective countries.

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the wheel arch challenge is to calculate the wheel arch area and to prove whether the given fender of car will pass the European standards or not.

EUROPEAN STANDARDS FOR WHEEL ARCH

• The clearance "L" as shown in the above fig. at all the five sections SA-SB-SC-SD-SE should be greater than 10 mm to meet the standards in Europe.
• wheel guard requirement: the value of "a" shall be more than 5mm at a line 30 degrees froward and 50 degrees rearward from the center vertical axis of the wheel.

DESIGN PROCESS

• software used- NX 12 CAD
• The sketch is drawn on the wheel face as per the European standards provided and projected on the wheel arch at sections SA, SB, SC, SD, and SE to measure "L", "a" and wheel arch area.

OBTAINING RESULT

A. Obtaining the value of clearance "L"

TABLE-A, Clearance "L" obtained at sections SA, SB, SC, SD, and SE

SECTION	CLEARANCE "L" (In mm)	REMARKS
SA	9.49mm < 10mm	Fail
SB	10.00mm = 10mm	Pass
SC	-0.11mm < 10mm	Fail
SD	-2.85mm < 10mm	Fail
SE	-5.97mm < 10mm	Fail

• From Table-A, the given fender doesn't pass the European standards for wheel arch area at sections SA, SB, SC, SD, and SE.

B. Obtaining the value of clearance "a" obtained for wheel guard requirement

TABLE-B, Clearance "a" obtained at section SB (at section 30 degree forward from the center axis), at SC (at 50 degree rearward from the center axis).

SECTION	ANGLE IN DEGREE	CLEARANCE "a"	REMARKS
SB	30	44.75mm > 5mm	PASS
SC	50	38.37mm > 5mm	PASS

• From Table B, the given fender passes the European standard for wheel arch area only in the case of clearance "a".

C. Wheel arch area of the given fender-

• wheel arch area- 24432.9334
• wheel arch radius- 421.18mm

CONCLUSION

From the above result obtained, we can conclude that the given fender doesn't pass the European standards for wheel arch area.

Suggestions to the styling team:-

The styling team is required to modify the styling surface of the fender such that the clearance "L" at sections SA, SC, SD, and SE is equal to or greater than 10mm by increasing their curvature at those sections towards the outside.