Fender Design - Wheel Arch Challenge

Objective :

To Calculate the Wheel Arch gap at required points and check whether the car passes the European standard for the given design.

Concept :

Fender design - Wheel Arc:

Wheel Arch is the semi-circular part of the fender positioned above the wheel of the vehicle. The design of the wheel arch of the fender should be such that it must shield wheels and protect both passengers compartment and pedestarians from the projection of watr, mud and stones.The wheel arch area of the fender is usually designed as a cover or shield over the tyre along its perimeter to stop any debris or stones ,dirt,sand,snow,etc,from getting thrown into the vehicle or the BIW area as well as outside the vehicle and onto other vehicles or pedestarians on the road.For the vehicle to has its permit in different countries,the wheel arch of fenders must be compliant with the standards and regulations set by respective countries.

The European regulations requires a pre-determined clearance or a minimum distance of 10mm to be maintained between the fender and respective Wheel at particular points, along the tyre profile as shown below:

Calculation of the Wheel Arch gap :

1. First I have created a plane on the face of given wheel design, on that plane sketch is drwan.
2. In sketch project the curves of wheel arc and Fender curve arev taken.
3. From the center point of wheel arc curve named as 'O' a horizontal and vertical axis is drawn.
4. The vertical axis intersection the fender curve that intersection point is labelled as 'B'.
5. Similar references are drawn at 30 degrees to left and 50 degree to the right and named as 'A' and 'C' respectively.
6. A offset line of 150mm is drawn from the horizontal axis and the line intersecting on Fender curve, that intersecting point on fender which gives point 'E', the line is drawn from E to center point of wheel arc O
7. The midpoint of the arc cut by the sections C and E results in a new section D as shown in below image.

• The line OA intersecting curves of Fender and line on the wheel sketch and creating point . The distance between those point and the line is more than 10 mm as shown in below image.

• The line OB intersecting curves of Fender and line on the wheel sketch and creating point . The distance between those point and the line is more than 10 mm as shown in below image.

• The line OC intersecting curves of Fender and line on the wheel sketch and creating point . The distance between those point and the line is less than 10 mm as shown in below image, so 'Fender is failing the vaue of European regulations'.

• The line OD intersecting curves of Fender and line on the wheel sketch and creating point . The distance between those point and the line is less than 10 mm and going in negative value as shown in below image.so 'Fender is failing the vaue of European regulations'.

• The line OE intersecting curves of Fender and line on the wheel sketch and creating point . The distance between those point and the line is less than 10 mm and going in negative value as shown in below image, so 'Fender is failing the vaue of European regulations'.
• 

Results :

At points C,D,E Fender distance from wheel arc is below 10 mm , As per European regulations Fender design fails .