Challenge

Fender Design - Wheel Arch Challenge

Fender Design

Objective: To design fender from given skin data by following master section and provide mountings to connected parts.

Fender is a connecting part between bumper and side door.

Functions:

To stop any foreign materials or debris entering in engine compartment such as mud, gravels, water. This may compromise functioning of engine and other vital components.
It acts as a guard to provide protection to the pedestrian or any other from moving wheel at a time of collision.

Types of Fender:

There are mainly two types of fender.

Full Fender:

Full fender is a whole integral part with bumper and side door as shown in image.
Full fender was used in previous generational cars where majority of components were made by sheet metal.
Main drawback of full fender is it uses more sheet metal along with higher scrap produced during manufacturing.
Limited aesthetic looks can be given due to sheet metal, increased vehicle weight and difficult to manufacture.

Half Fender:

As a name suggests it is only made in half part where other parts are joined by means of fasteners with various body parts.
It is joined to bumper and side door separately.
It uses less sheet metal, reduces scrap and easy to manufacture.

Japanese Standards

Measure the clearance L of the tire, hub, cap, and fender in three different positions within area K and validate data for given criteria.
Clearance have to be greater than 5 mm in all the three positions (i.e., at A, B, C from fender curvature)
Wheel guard requirement: The value of 'a' shall be more than 5 mm at line 30* forward and 50* rearward from the central vertical axis of the wheel.

American Standards

Clearance is checked in details on all positions from -100* to 100*.
All values have to be greater than 5 mm to satisfy the regulations.
The value of 'a' must be more than 5 mm at line 30* forward and 50* rearward from the central vertical axis of the wheel.

European Standards

Clearance is measured at sections SA-SA, SB-SB, SC-SC, SD-SD, SE-SE .
In all five sections, the Clearance L value have to be greater than 10 mm to satisfy these regulations.
Wheel guard requirement: The value of ‘a’ must be more than 5 mm at line 30* forward and 50* rearward from the central vertical axis of the wheel.