Wiring harness design in CATIA V5 - 3D modeling Week 2 Challenge
WIRING HARNESS DESIGN IN CATIA V5
INTRODUCTION:
Wiring harness is the combination of electrical and mechanical CAD to connect all the electrical parts in the automotive at the optimum level.
BASICS OF ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM (EDS) AND WIRING HARNESS
1) Electrical Distribution System: It runs from front end to rear end of the vehicle. It involves physical and logical architecture schematic development, power distribution, wiring harness design, wiring harness component design of given electrical system. It ensures the physical location of all electrical components placed in the vehicle. It provides the logical connectivity between electrical components. It has electrical controller unit for different sections like Airbag ECU, ABS ECU, Engine (ECU).
2) E&E Architecture: It is the high-level logical connectivity diagram. It represents all the systems, sub-systems and logical connections between them. It shows the Control Area Network (CAN) between different electronic components.
3) Logical schematics: Detailed design of E&E architecture. It shows the logical connectivity between different components and controls of given systema and subsystem. It does not define any other parameter except electrical connectivity.
4) Electrical schematics: Detailed design of logical schematics, pin to pin connectivity, properties, fusing distribution, grounding distribution, interconnects, wire properties (wire gauge, color, type), circuit properties (circuit number, connector designation number, control device number), specification of components, end results of electrical core design of system and primary input for harness design.
5) Wiring harness topology: Strategy to split the harness between different pieces to achieve the best manufacturability, serviceability and cost-effective design.
6) Wiring harness routing: It provides the desired path of wiring harness into given vehicle environment by applying set of design rules and industry best practices.
7) Wiring harness packaging: Fixing/mounting strategy of wiring harness routing to ensure the safe, reliable and durability of wiring harness by applying set of design rules and industry best practices.
WIRING HARNESS ASSEMBLY
The term Wiring Harness refers to the assembly of
1) Wires: Various bundled wires together. Each individual wire is responsible for carrying the electrical signals and energy. Wires are made up of Cu conductors insulated with PVC insulation.
2) Connectors: These are electro-mechanical device used to join electrical termination. Connectors create an electrical circuit. These are plastic molded housing with locking and retention feature.
3) Terminals: A device used to terminate a conductor that is to be affixed to post, stud, chassis, another tongue etc., to establish electrical connection. These are metal conductors with plating constructed in specific shape.;
4) Protection devices: Corrugated flexible tube.
5) Insulation: adhesive and non-adhesive tapes and sleeves. Polymer or cotton/polymer (very effective in high-temperature zone).
6) Clips & Clamps: Plastic molded parts with mounting /snapping features.
7) Fuse and relay box: Plastic molded parts used to package fuses and relays in systematic manner.
8) Retention device: Plastic molded parts to mount connector and other harness components. Connector backshells.
9) Guiding channels: Plastic molded parts or metal parts designed to guide harness bundle in given geometric area to secure and protect the harness.
10) Electronic components: Diodes, terminating resistors, flasher, Timer circuits are some parts of harness supply.
Download the specified connector from te.com. In the part design workbench provide the center point and axis system to the wire inserting end and connection end. The axis must be given in a specified way:
X-axis: Towards the clamp
Y-axis: Towards the connection
Z-axis: left or right of the connector.
Once the axis is defined. Select the electrical part design workbench. Using the define connector tool, convert the mechanical part into connector. Now given the define connection points and define bundle points. If cavity/mounting is available in the part define the cavity connection points. Once the electrical properties are given new properties will be shown in the design tree.
Using the electrical part assembly workbench all the parts can be assembled once the connection points are given.
CONCLUSION
The connector is successfully modeled in CATIA V5 and the same is added to the catalog for further references.