Automotive trends:
In an automotive industry, technological changes happen at a rapid rate. While in the long term trends towards the adaptation of electric cars, shared mobility and automatic cars will surely dominate the industry. The efficiency of internal combustion engines continues to be an area of high focus for the automotive designers world-over. Some of the key trends that our customers demand are; the downsizing of engines, growing HVAC usage, increasing use of turbocharged engines, lightweight engines and finally increasing thermal efficiency while controlling emissions.
At Banco, design is an “outside – in” process. Our engineers spend a lot of time in understanding customer requirements such as:
- Downsizing of heat exchanger thickness
- Lightweight heat exchanger to achieve CO2 reduction
- Optimizing heat transfer
- Pressure drop reduction through heat exchangers to reduce fan power consumption
- Supporting new designs complying with BSVI norms
- Easy installation to reduce service cost
All of the above leads to the adoption of an integrated approach to analyzing and optimizing engine heat management.
Co-creating engine cooling solutions with our customers
Our early stage partnership for product development with our customer includes:
- Detailed understanding of customer requirements.
- Partnering with OEM’s for efficient engine cooling solution development
- Providing early inputs to customer
- Front grill opening finalization along with customer
- Evolution of an optimized solution
- Banco design release gates in synchronization with customer
Detailed technical steps include:
- Concept design using 1D simulation tools.
- Engine heat rejection data finalization.
- Cooling air specification finalization.
- Fan design finalization.
- Component level simulation using MathCAD.
- Checking conformance to Banco design guidelines.
- System simulation using Kuli
Developing robust design of heat exchangers:
Designing cooling system modules like radiators or charge air coolers that fulfill customers’ high-performance expectation, is a challenge that designers at Banco enjoy. Classical radiator designs are offered in multiple rows and in multiple fin density combination to optimize system performance. Our designers have various options to choose from a wide range of tube shapes and dimensions.
Banco offers specialized versions of high dimpled tubes for copper/brass radiators with bar/plate designs. Multiple fin designs are also available depending on the various types of application requirements.
Vast experience of our engineers in dealing with varied applications is captured and documented under Banco design guidelines. Leveraging this vast know-how and sophisticated design tools, our engineers are in a position to offer high-performance solutions that best fit customer’s performance and dimensional needs.
Design verification and simulation
Our design engineers use modern tools for design verification before offering solution to our customers:
- Fin design optimization using customized Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software
- Internal design and inside flow optimization through Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models
- Pressure Cycle Simulation using CAE software ANSYS.
- Stress Analysis of tube and header using CAE software ANSYS
- FEA Simulation for Charge Air Cooler Thermal Cycle Induced Load
Prototyping
In a highly dynamic market environment, customers are looking for significant increase in “time to market” efficiency.
At Banco, we have responded to this challenge by investing in a dedicated prototype development shop. This facility is equipped with advanced and flexible machinery that is ideally suited to manufacture prototypes at a short notice. This allows us to offer rapid prototyping to continually adapt to new and better solutions together with our customers.
Design validation
In order to ensure that our design meets the fit, firm and functional requirements specified by our customers, we use analytical as well as physical testing methods. Advanced analytical methods such as FEA, CFD etc. are effectively used by our engineers. We also have acquired extensive capabilities to carry out physical tests such as durability test as an integral part of our comprehensive product development process.
Some of the critical test capabilities at Banco include:
- Wind tunnel to carry out heat exchanger performance test
- Burst pressure rig
- Vibration rig
- Salt spray chamber
- Thermal cycle rig
- SWAAT chamber
- Pressure cycle rig
- Liquid nitrogen cold chamber
- Combined vibration rig + pressure cycle rig
- Internal corrosion test rig
- Combined vibration rig + pressure cycle + thermal cycle rig
- Fan motor cowl testing
Pressure cycle rig
Pressure cycle tests are done to perform durability test for the components exposed to rapid pressure changes. This rig has a decisive role in Banco’s product research and development process. We follow international standards like IS13686:1993 and other standards and specifications based on mutual agreement with our customers.
Temperature cycle rig
Temperature cycle test is the process of cycling through two temperature extremes, typically at a high rate of change. It is an environmental stress test used for evaluating product reliability and for the detection of latent defects by inducing failure through thermal fatigue.
Wind tunnel
Banco’s wind tunnel test facility provides us a distinct advantage in product development as we are able to test different core configuration prototypes quickly. Our engineers fine tune the performance characteristics using modern tools for design verification of our cooling system products by testing prototypes under varying conditions such as:
- Air velocity and pressure
- Air, water and oil temperature
- Coolant flow rate
By using the wind tunnel facility, our engineers simulate and monitor real environmental conditions in terms of heat transfer, coolant pressure drop and air side pressure drop; and thus validate the product’s performance needs. We follow international standards like IS13687:1993, JIS1614: P2000 and SAEJI: 1994 for testing of cooling systems and we also undertake specific tests specified by our customers.
Cooperating with our customers for vehicle level validation
Our engineers actively participate in vehicle level tests carried out by our customers such as power train cooling test etc. Close cooperation with design experts from the customers organization is ensured at every stage of product development to outperform the expectations every time.