Lasers, a Dummy and Tolerance in the DaimlerChrysler HightechReport

* State-of-the-art lasers in production
* Climate control investigations with the sensor dummy
* Tolerances in engines and assemblies

Stuttgart, Jun 20, 2007 -- From laser applications in production through the use of a climate dummy up to devising tolerances for the engine and powertrain: These and further fascinating topics, illustrated with images from research and technology, can be discovered in the latest issue of the DaimlerChrysler HightechReport, which will appear tomorrow.


Concentrated light

The advantage of concentrated laser beams is that their intensity can be finely metered. They can be controlled to a high degree of precision in terms of time and space and applied with pinpoint accuracy. Today, for example, high-tech lasers are used to weld together transmission components and bodywork elements rapidly and reliably. In the S-Class bodyshell, 14 meters of weld beads are produced by laser alone. Further areas of application are being opened up by new, more economical laser beam sources now available on the market, which are characterized by improved beam quality and higher power ratings. Lightweight concepts, which cannot be manufactured with conventional welding technology, are also made possible with these lasers.

Meet Dr. Oscar

Dr. Oscar is a climate measurement dummy whose innards contain 118 sensors and 500 meters of cable; he makes subjective impressions objectively measurable. He registers three key air conditioning parameters that influence our feeling of comfort when traveling in a vehicle: temperature distribution from head to toe, air flow speed, and heat radiation from the sun and from the surfaces inside the vehicle. Rather than merely estimating whether there is a draft coming from somewhere, or it is perhaps too cool, Dr. Oscar provides clear, meaningful measurements. These data, together with the climate comfort assessments of test persons, provide the DaimlerChrysler engineers with valuable information for optimally devising a pleasant climate within the vehicle.

Simulated tolerance

Tolerance not only makes daily life easier in interpersonal relations, but is also the basis of smooth cooperation between components. This leeway within permissible minimal deviations is defined by the engineers in such a way that the components on the one hand function reliably and on the other hand can be economically manufactured. What has been established for many years in bodyshell manufacture is now being investigated by the DaimlerChrysler researchers and developers with the help of simulations for the engine and the entire powertrain. Tolerance analyses show which fine adjustment screws are worth resetting – from the very beginning of the product creation process right up to the manufacture of series-produced parts.

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