| Summary: |
One of the current Focuses, of the engineering community, is the development of a new generation of high-performance mechanical systems that have integrated sensing, diagnostics and control capabilities while continuing to perform their intended functions. The automotive industry, among many others, is keen on increasing the use of these integrated systems in their vehicles with the aim of saving weight, increasing the number of functions and reducing both the component and assembly costs. To this end, this project seeks to develop smart devices and materials for automotive interiors that incorporate sensor and actuator capabilities for both conventional and new functions in terms of: safety, comfort, performance, aesthetic and information processing.
The design of novel integrated systems for smart interiors, proposed in the project, is extremely challenging and requires the development of scientific understanding in several areas together with their practical application. To address such a multidisciplinary topic, a consortium with several partners, which provide complementary skills in the field of research, was specifically chosen. The project participants comprise members from three Universities together with four industrial partners. The three major industrial partners are well established automotive suppliers in complementary areas for automotive interiors: artificial leathers and soft tissues (TMG), technical molded components (lber-Oleff) and seat related components (Sunviauto). In addition, a company that specializes in sensoring technologies (FiberSensing) is also part of the consortium.
The objectives of the work program are to utilize and further develop existing experimental and computational instruments and expertise available to the partners in order to provide the knowledge necessary for the automotive industry to develop large-scale production processes of integrated systems for smart interiors. Some of the key aspects of the work incl  |
Summary
One of the current Focuses, of the engineering community, is the development of a new generation of high-performance mechanical systems that have integrated sensing, diagnostics and control capabilities while continuing to perform their intended functions. The automotive industry, among many others, is keen on increasing the use of these integrated systems in their vehicles with the aim of saving weight, increasing the number of functions and reducing both the component and assembly costs. To this end, this project seeks to develop smart devices and materials for automotive interiors that incorporate sensor and actuator capabilities for both conventional and new functions in terms of: safety, comfort, performance, aesthetic and information processing.
The design of novel integrated systems for smart interiors, proposed in the project, is extremely challenging and requires the development of scientific understanding in several areas together with their practical application. To address such a multidisciplinary topic, a consortium with several partners, which provide complementary skills in the field of research, was specifically chosen. The project participants comprise members from three Universities together with four industrial partners. The three major industrial partners are well established automotive suppliers in complementary areas for automotive interiors: artificial leathers and soft tissues (TMG), technical molded components (lber-Oleff) and seat related components (Sunviauto). In addition, a company that specializes in sensoring technologies (FiberSensing) is also part of the consortium.
The objectives of the work program are to utilize and further develop existing experimental and computational instruments and expertise available to the partners in order to provide the knowledge necessary for the automotive industry to develop large-scale production processes of integrated systems for smart interiors. Some of the key aspects of the work include:
- embedding optical fibres and other sensors in laminated structures for automotive interior applications and trimming (fabrics, coatings or structural elements of automotive components). The laminated structures are composed of layers, comprising textile and/or polymeric materials.
- Development of optimized interfaces between humans and both electronic and mechanical devices. This includes the design and performance assessment of these interfaces.
- Design of new multi materials solutions for car seats that incorporate intelligent features in terms of safety and comfort.
The main project output will take the form of a body of research knowledge based an validated computational decision support instruments and experimental test data, complemented by the results of validation of the prototypes. |