CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
23 February 2005
Implementation Investments
Toyota Motorsport Improves F1 Driver Conditions with PLM Technology from Dassault Systemes
Dassault Systemes announced that Toyota Motorsport GmbH will develop racecar cockpits that optimize driver comfort, safety, and ergonomics with its CATIA V5 Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solution for virtual product development.
The CATIA V5 Human Modeling Solutions will enable Toyota Motorsport GmbH designers to minimize the physiological demands placed on its drivers from heat, noise, vibration and the car's safety restraints. Using cutting-edge CATIA V5 Human Modeling ergonomics tools, Toyota Motorsport GmbH engineers will simulate driver behavior and measure key criteria such as reach, visibility, comfort, posture, biomechanics, strength and anthropometrics. This analysis will enable the team to make driver-oriented decisions about cockpit design, while respecting the overall aerodynamics of the racecar body.
To optimize cockpit ergonomics, engineers will first create a digital model of each driver using a combination of laser scanning and manual anthropometrical techniques. The resulting virtual models will be used to analyze and improve specific accommodation issues such as driver comfort and security, and accessibility and serviceability of components inside the cockpit during pit stops-without the need to involve the actual drivers.
"The cockpit is the nucleus of a racecar," said Waldemar Klemm, IT manager, Toyota Motorsport GmbH. "It's a very confined space that protects the vital elements of the car, most importantly the driver. An improved cockpit, with a comfortably and safely installed driver brings us closer to success at every race. The integration of the CATIA V5 Human Modeling ergonomics tools within our PLM product development platform allows us to manage ergonomics data in an efficient and intuitive manner within the overall development process of the entire car."
"We are particularly pleased that Toyota Motorsport GmbH has decided to use the CATIA V5 Human Modeling Solutions as part of their PLM deployment," said Mark Morrissey, general manager, Ergonomic Solutions, Dassault Systemes. "Toyota Motorsport GmbH's commitment to integrate their design process, including ergonomics studies for the driver environment, is the type of user scenario we envisioned when we integrated the SAFEWORK human modeling technology into the CATIA V5 architecture."
The first phase of the CATIA V5 Human Modeling Solutions implementation was recently completed when 2005 F1 drivers Ralf Schumacher and Jarno Trulli were measured and laser-scanned at the headquarters in Cologne in order to create the digital models that will be used to simulate and optimize their comfort and performance within the TF105 racing car.
For more information on Toyota Motorsports' project and more photos of the solution, please visit the web site: http://www.3ds.com/toyotaf1 .
Toyota Motorsport GmbH is the motorsport subsidiary of Toyota Motor Corporation. Toyota Motorsport GmbH is in charge of Panasonic Toyota Racing, the official name for Toyota's Formula 1 team. With over 600 staff from 32 different nations, Toyota Motorsport GmbH builds its entire Formula 1 car, the TF105, under one roof at its 30,000 square meter factory in Cologne, Germany. The 2005 F1 Championship is Toyota's fourth season in F1-the pinnacle of motorsport-after previous motorsport successes at the World Rally Championship and the 24 hours of Le Mans.
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