© M S Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies

Session 1
Introduction
Automotive Design and Process
Speaker

Mithun S. K.
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Session Objectives
At the end of this session the students would have
understood
- Different steps in automotive design process
- Factor influencing automotive design
- Automotive exterior design
- Basic automotive design terminologies

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 Industrial Designer / Transportation Designer

• Accurately sketch preliminary transportation concepts;

• Detail their design solutions using appropriate means and materials;
• Analyze transport design problems;
• Understand transportation design styling terms;
• Understand the types of materials, construction techniques, advances
in engineering and technology that have recently occurred in the
automotive/transportation industries;
• Observe and employ occupational health and safety principles and
rules appropriate to studio practice.
• In charge of proposing relevant and appealing solutions.
• By creating new experiences for the user,
• The Transportation Designer will carry important expertise for the
brand development: he has the power to create future best seller
vehicles.

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 Introduction to Automotive Design

Automotive also refers; Motorcycles, Trucks, Buses, Coaches, and vans

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 Segment of cars

• A: mini cars
• B: small cars
• C: medium cars
• D: large cars
• E: executive cars
• F: luxury cars
• S: sport coupés
• M: multi purpose cars
• J: sport utility cars (including off-road vehicles)

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Automotive exterior terminologies

SEDAN

STATION WAGON

HATCHBACK

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 Design studio layout

Source: http://www.chrysler.com/design/vehicle_design/process/index7.html

• Large Team members of many different discipline: Industrial/Transportation

Designers, Automotive Engineers Electronic Engineers and Clay Modelers etc.
• Primarily concerned: developing visual appearance or aesthetics of the
vehicle
• Designers and Studio Engineers use computer workstations for sketching
and modeling works
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 Stages in Design Process
Product Planning
Colour and Trims
Package data
Making of Prototypes
Concept Generation and
Theme Selection
Design Evaluation
Studio Engineering and Tape
Drawing Styling freeze

Form Explorations Design Quality Assurance

(DQA)
Conceptual Data Development
Prototype Testing
Clay modeling
Final Product
Product I.D

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 Product Planning and the Brief
• Carried out by multi-disciplinary team to establish parameters and
decision points
• Market needs and type of customers
• This group will remain responsible for ensuring that discipline
activities are completed to schedule
• Designers work to the design brief, which will states who the car is for,
what type shall be, how much is it expected cost
• The brief identifies the position of new vehicle in the market

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 Package Data

• The balance between product design,

engineering / manufacturing alternatives.
• This phase includes defining basic vehicle
architecture and developing theme specific
feasibility.
• This process involves benchmarking,
component packaging, and engineering
studies coordinated with platform engineers
and suppliers
Source:
http://www.autospeed.com/cms/A_1
217/article.html

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 Concept Generation and Theme Selection

Sources: Styling of “Sports Utility Vehicle” by Anand M Kulkarni

Concept phase
Theme boards and mood boards, Initial selection of two-dimensional
(2D) design themes to be progressed.

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 Concept Generation and Theme Selection
Sketching / Ideation phase

Sources: www.germancarblog.com

• Designers put the ideas for exterior and interior of the new vehicle in
paper

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 Concept Generation and Theme Selection

Sources: www.style4cars.com

• Informal selection of concept sketches and Management review of

concept sketches
• The most appropriate sketch is selected that matches the needs in the
design
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 Exterior Design

http://www.style4cars.com/

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 Exterior Design

http://www.cardesignnews.com

• Exterior designing beginnings with an inspiration that becomes a

sketch.
• Designers create sketches using both manual and electronic
techniques

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 Exterior Design
• Groups of sketches are created along
thematic lines
• Design Management select the concept
with most promising ideas.
• Computer rendering tools were used for
further refinement.
• Design ideas mature through frequent
interaction and feedback from
Management, Engineering platform teams
and Marketing team

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 Studio Engineering and Tape Drawing

• The balance between product design and feasible

engineering/manufacturing alternatives.
• Translating two dimensional idea into 3D
• Outstanding tool for controlling design’s proportion and main lines
• Check the engineering functions

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 Form Explorations

• The designer develops more detailed renderings using 3 D software in

multiple views to better illustrate what the vehicle will look like in 3
dimensions.
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 Form Explorations

• Initial form development in 3D software: Alias.

• Development of mathematical curves which are evaluated for
smoothness and continuity.
• The final image is then rendered with lighting effects. It is then
viewed on a large screen projection system and evaluated at full scale

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 Form Explorations

CAD modeling and Virtual Reality

presentation

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 Conceptual Data Development (CDD)
• CDD uses CAD software
package, CATIA, to further
develop the designer's interior
and exterior themes.
• The CAD operator receives
input from various sources: oral
direction or sketches from the
designer, engineering sections,
or scan data from clay models.
• Mirrors, tires and wheels are
developed and added to the
CAD data.
• Data can be used for feasibility
studies, simulation and
animation

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 Clay Modelling
• This process transforms the 3-D
computer design into reality
• Sense of the design's size,
proportion, and design character.
• Clay models (Clay model sizes
range from 1/5 scale to full size)
produced, normally of more than
one concept.
• These are normally milled out of
clay by a 5-axis milling machine
from CAD data and hand-
finished.
• Dynoc film is applied over the
clay model for better light
reflection.

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 Clay Modelling

• Ergonomic buck begin simultaneously with the exterior work

• Purpose of testing seating position ,view through windshield etc.

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 Clay Modelling

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 Product I.D

• Logos not only positively

identify the vehicles, they
also contribute to the unique
personality of each car which
can range from luxurious and
elegant to sporty and bold.
• Product Identity Studio that
designs and produces all
exterior, interior, and
underhood ornamentation.

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 Colours and Trims
• The Color and trim Studio is
responsible for the research, design,
and development of all interior and
exterior colors and materials used
on a vehicle.
• Trends in fashion, home furnishing,
and architecture are observed.
• Trend boards are then created to
monitor design influences in
automotive business.

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 Colours and Trims

Selection of colour and trim variants for the Audi R8 and Q7 models

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 Prototype

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 Design Evaluation
• Full size exterior and interior
models and drawing are used to
evaluate the vehicle’s
appearance and ergonomics.
• Concepts shown to members of
the public for their comments.
• Public attitudes are used to
inform the revision of concepts.

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 Styling Freeze
• Body style and mechanical specification are finalized.
• Major changes in the sheet metal or mechanical elements are very
expensive beyond this stage.

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 Design Quality Assurance (DQA)

• DQA assists production

studios in the generation of
perfect surface release
data.
• 3 D models are evaluated
with a computer generated
reflectivity using the
rendering system.
• Monitors fit and finish
guidelines and the product
through the development
phase to final
manufacturing.

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 Prototype Testing
• Hand build prototypes are
tested under normal and
extreme driving conditions.

• Crash test performance is

evaluated using computer
simulations.
• Real crash test to meet
stringent crash and safety
requirements.

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 Final Product

• Product will be unveiled at major international show.

• If they are well-received, the cars might find their way into
production.

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 Factors Influencing Automotive Design
Consumers
demands
Sales and Brand image
Market

Corporate
Quality Design
strategy

Regulatory
Cost
requirements
analysis

Package Aerodynamics
Production
method

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35
 Summary / Conclusion

• Automotive design process and different types of exterior design

have been discussed
• The major terminologies used by automotive designers have
been introduced

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