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Structural
Structural Integrity
Integrity Procedia
Procedia 00
00 (2019)
(2019) 000–000
000–000
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
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ScienceDirect
Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42

IGF26 - 26th International Conference on Fracture and Structural Integrity

Structural Assessment of Ladder Frame Chassis using FE Analysis:

A Designed Construction referring to Ford AC Cobra
Imam Abdul Majidaa, Fajar Budi Laksonobb, Hendri Suryantobb, Aditya Rio Prabowoa,a,*
aDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta 57126, Indonesia
a
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta 57126, Indonesia
bb
Department
Department of
of Research
Research and
and Development,
Development, P.T.
P.T. DTECH
DTECH Inovasi
Inovasi Indonesia,
Indonesia, Salatiga
Salatiga 50742,
50742, Indonesia
Indonesia

Abstract
Abstract

Technology
Technology in in the
the field
field of
of transportation
transportation has has developed
developed veryvery rapidly
rapidly turned
turned to
to be
be one
one of
of the
the most
most challenging
challenging fields
fields of
of engineering.
engineering.
Chassis
Chassis isis one
one of
of the
the important
important parts
parts in
in the
the stability
stability of
of aa vehicle
vehicle that
that used
used in
in automotive
automotive industry,
industry, because
because allall components
components related
related
to
to the
the stability
stability attached
attached to
to the
the vehicle
vehicle chassis.
chassis. The
The purpose
purpose of of this
this research
research is
is to
to get
get the
the results
results of
of chassis
chassis simulation
simulation onon aa Ford
Ford AC AC
Cobra
Cobra ladder
ladder frame
frame under
under the
the applied
applied loads
loads using
using Finite
Finite Element
Element Analysis
Analysis (FEA).
(FEA). This
This research
research was
was conducted
conducted in in several
several stages
stages
of
of process,
process, such
such as
as modeling
modeling chassis
chassis by
by Autodesk
Autodesk Fusion
Fusion 360.360. The
The frame
frame is
is going
going toto be
be simulated
simulated with
with static
static loading
loading byby determining
determining
fixed
fixed constrains
constrains and
and then
then will
will be
be given
given the the vertical
vertical force.
force. The
The fixed
fixed constrains
constrains onon the
the frame
frame is
is clamped
clamped at at both
both the
the front
front and
and rear
rear
wheel
wheel base.
base. After
After assessment
assessment by by finite
finite element
element calculation,
calculation, thethe maximum
maximum displacement
displacement is is found
found to
to 0.3359
0.3359 mm mm with
with 1.153
1.153 safety
safety
factor
factor and
and the
the maximum
maximum von-Mises
von-Mises Stress
Stress ofof the
the chassis
chassis is is 264.4
264.4 MPa.
MPa. These
These results
results indicate
indicate that
that the
the designed
designed chassis
chassis is
is capable
capable
to
to hold
hold 4900
4900 N N vertical
vertical load
load and
and it
it still
still deforms
deforms inin elastic
elastic condition
condition andand under
under allowable
allowable zone
zone according
according to to the
the applied
applied material
material
properties.
properties.
© 2021
© 2021 The
TheAuthors.
Authors.Published
Published by Elsevier B.V.
by ELSEVIER B.V.
© 2021
This is anThe
openAuthors. Published
access article under by
the ELSEVIER
CC BY-NC-ND B.V.
license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
This
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee oflicense
is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND the IGF (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
ExCo
Peer-review
Peer-review Statement:
Statement: Peer-review
Peer-review under
under responsibility
responsibility of
of the
the scientific
scientific committee
committee of
of the
the IGF
IGF ExCo
ExCo
Keywords: Vehicle
Keywords: Vehicle chassis,
chassis, ladder
ladder frame,
frame, Finite
Finite Element
Element Analysis,
Analysis, static
static loading
loading

1.
1. Introduction
Introduction

Almost
Almost all
all activities
activities carried
carried out
out by
by people
people are
are related
related to
to the
the use
use of
of transportation
transportation structures.
structures. This
This facility
facility makes
makes it
it
easy for
easy for people
people to
to move
move places
places or
or goods
goods to
to certain
certain destinations.
destinations. Technology
Technology inin the
the field
field of
of transportation
transportation has
has developed
developed

*
* Corresponding
Corresponding author.
author. Tel.:
Tel.: +62-271-632-163;
+62-271-632-163; fax:
fax: +62-271-632-163
+62-271-632-163
E-mail address: aditya@ft.uns.ac.id
E-mail address: aditya@ft.uns.ac.id

2452-3216
2452-3216 © © 2020
2020 The
The Authors.
Authors. Published
Published by
by ELSEVIER
ELSEVIER B.V.
B.V.
This is
This is an
an open
open access
access article
article under
under the
the CC
CC BY-NC-ND
BY-NC-ND license
license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
Peer-review
Peer-review under
under responsibility
responsibility of
of the
the European
European Structural
Structural Integrity
Integrity Society
Society (ESIS)
(ESIS) ExCo
ExCo

2452-3216 © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the IGF ExCo
10.1016/j.prostr.2021.10.006
36 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42
2 Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

very rapidly, in developed and developing countries. These developments are required because of the higher levels of
human mobility. Based on data from the Indonesian statistical center in 2018, the number of bus vehicles was
2,538,182. As for passenger vehicles or cars as many as 16,440,987. This number will continue to increase over time
(BPS-Statistics Indonesia, 2018). Vehicle development has turned to be one of the most challenging fields of
engineering over the last decades. Pressure for cost-effective products and the time to market has been increased over
the years, which lead the engineering teams to suffer several management experiences, in order to find the optimum
development (Spinelli et al., 2001). Chassis is one of the important parts that used in automotive industry (Ghalazy et
al., 2014). Automotive chassis is a frame just like skeletal on which various machine parts like engine, tires, axle
assemblies, brakes, and steering are bolted. It gives strength and stability to the vehicle under different conditions.
Frames provide strength as well as flexibility to the automobile. Automotive chassis is the supporting frame like
backbone of any automobile to which the body of an engine, axle assemblies are affixed (Ary et al., 2020).
Analysis of the designed chassis referring to an AC Cobra car is carried out to determine how much displacement,
stress, strain, reaction force, and safety factor. The proposed chassis is a space frame style design, using Computed
Aided Design (CAD), created in Autodesk Fusion 360. After completing the design, using finite element analysis
(FEA) techniques, different loading conditions have been simulated to assess the build quality and design and how the
chassis would react in different situations. Optimizations helped very much due to the critical areas' visualization and
over-build areas of the chassis.

2. Literature review

Chassis is the most important part in the stability of a vehicle, because all components related to the stability
attached to the chassis. Some of them are suspension, wheels, steering system, braking system, and where to take the
engine. The different types of automobile chassis include Ladder chassis, Monocoque chassis and Backbone chassis
(Veloso et al., 2009). The ladder chassis considered one of the oldest forms of automotive or car chassis still used by
most SUVs today. As its name implies, ladder chassis resembles a ladder shape having two longitudinal rails
interlinked by several lateral and cross braces. A finite element stress analysis needs to be carried out at the failure
region to determine the stress distribution and possible design improvements. A general engineering approach is to
design structures that have maximum internal stress several times safety factor less than the yield strength of the used
material to prevent structural failure. Thus, it is a practical purpose to have a method that can be applied to study the
chassis response under various loading conditions. This research uses FEA to investigate car chassis response under
static loads such as the stress loads, strain, displacement, reaction force, and safety factor.

Fig. 1. A coarse mesh. All nodes and elements lie in the plane of the paper (Cook et al., 1995).

This process results in a set of simultaneous algebraic equations. In stress analysis, these equations are equilibrium
equations of the nodes. There may be several hundred or several thousand such equations, which means that computer
implementation is mandatory. Eqs. 1-5 is a calculation formula as a basis for analyzing the designed chassis using the
finite element approach.
 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42 37
Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000 3

Equation of displacement:
D = Xf -Xi (1)

Equation of stress:
ி
ߪൌ (2)
஺

Equation of strain:
ο௟
ߝൌ (3)
௟బ

Equation of reaction force:

F = -F (4)

Equation of safety factor:

ఙ
݊ ൌ ಾ (5)
ఙೈ

3. Pioneer works on structural chassis design and analysis

The design process of the chassis consists of many steps, from the initial assignment to the task of chassis design
to the start of construction. These steps are; to identify the restriction, determine the required performance criteria,
research design techniques and methodology, use of CAD software to design chassis and lastly start construction.
Throughout these steps, choices must be made based on the targets that are to be achieved to meet the performance
requirement. The designer of the chassis must have an idea as to how all components of the car are going to function
in relation to each other. As a result, the designer must know how all parts must interact and take this interaction into
account when designing the frame. The design of a racing car chassis, or any racing chassis for that matter, is going
to be based on suspension points, powertrain layout, driver position controls, safety, etc. These important points must
come together to form an effective package for the car to intended performance (Salzano et al., 2009). The driver's
safety should be of prime importance form designing a chassis. Hence, the design should be made such that any impact
forces do not reach the driver. The ladder frame chassis among various chassis is easy to manufacture and is very cost-
efficient. A ladder frame chassis also gives proper triangulation since it is based on the truss's working principle. It
makes the chassis stronger and more rigid on the application of loads.
Main Hoop, Front Hoop, Side Impact Protection and Crush Zone are the various segments that constitute the
structure of a chassis, the Main Hoop is meant to ensure the safety of the upper part of the driver’s body, while the
Front Hoop is tasked with the protection of the driver’s arm in the event of rollover. The side impact protection section,
as the name suggests is meant to protect the driver in the event of a lateral collision with another car. Being frontally
placed the crush zone is designed to absorb a significant proportion of energy during a head-on collision. Out of these,
the frame provides necessary support to the vehicle components placed on it. Also the frame should be strong enough
to withstand shock, twist, vibrations and other stresses. The chassis frame consists of side members attached with a
series of cross members. Stress analysis using Finite Element Method (FEM) can be used to locate the critical point
which has the highest stress. This critical point is one of the factors that may cause the fatigue failure. The accuracy
of prediction life of car chassis is depending on the result of its stress analysis. Finite Element Analysis is performed
on this design to check for its safety. The weight of the chassis, FEA results and manufacturability were the parameters
considered to finalize the chassis design. Dynamic characteristic of a structure can be analyzed either through modal
or harmonic analysis which can be carried out from experiment or simulation (He et al., 2001; Bathe, 2014; Caesar et
al., 2020; Prabowo et al., 2020).
The benefits of using the CAD/CAE technology for the mechanical, electrical and fuel systems layout for rapid
analysis of system configuration and re-configuration were also realized (Goodnow et al., 2004). Safety of the driver
was the primary objective. Autodesk Fusion 360 was the Software used to construct the CAD design of the Chassis.
The basis of the Design was the data acquired from other Departments like Suspension, Steering, Brakes and Power
train (Mohammed et al., 2018). All vehicles are subjected to both static and dynamic loads. Dynamic loads result from
inertia forces arising from driving on uneven surfaces (Ozes and Kuralay, 2002). Static load of stationary vehicle,
38 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42
4 Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

braking, acceleration, cornering, torsion, maximum load on front axle which are balanced by inertia forces and
maximum load on rear axle (Beerman, 1989).

4. Analysis preparations

4.1. Geometry and applied material

The first step of this method is forming a geometric model ladder frame chassis refers to AC Cobra's similar chassis
design by using Autodesk Fusion 360 software (see Fig. 2). This AC Cobra chassis material uses steel and is designed
using a double-sided tube beam ladder frame. Then the material is given to the chassis by using Finite Element
Simulation Software, then determine geometry fixed setting, input force on the part, running mesh process, then result
in static load simulation. The final step is calculating data. This frame will be simulated with static loading by
determine fixed support and then will be given the vertical force. The supports fixed to the frame are clamped at both
the front and rear suspension. The specification of the chassis is described in Table 1. The applied material used for
AC Cobra similar chassis ladder frame in this study case is steel. These material properties have shown in Table 2.

Fig. 2. Designed ladder frame referring to AC Cobra chassis geometry.

Table 1. Chassis specification.

Component Value
Chassis type Ladder frame chassis
Main side beams Two side tube beam
Wheel base 2286 mm
Rear overhange 191.3405 mm
Front overhange 177.9375 mm
Gross vehicle weight 7.323 x 104 g
Length 2614.709 mm
Width 682.992 mm

Table 2. Properties of the applied material.

Material Properties Value
Density 7.85 x 10-6 kg/mm3
Young's Modulus 210000 MPa
Poisson's Ratio 0.3
Yield Strength 207 MPa
Ultimate Tensile Strength 345 MPa

4.2. Numerical configuration

The mesh size is made different and determined by default by the software, which adapts to the complexity of the
frame and the computer's capabilities. The average element size frame design is 15mm. The meshing is done on the
model with 555593 numbers of nodes and 272966 numbers of Parabolic elements. The result of the meshing carried
out on the AC Cobra chassis ladder frame design is shown in Table 3.
 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42 39
Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000 5

Table 3. The results of meshing process.

Property Setting
Scale Mesh Size Per Part No
Average Element Size (absolute value) 15 mm
Element Order Parabolic
Create Curved Mesh Elements No
Max. Turn Angle on Curves (Deg.) 60
Max. Adjacent Mesh Size Ratio 1.5
Max. Aspect Ratio 10
Minimum Element Size (% of average size) 20

This case study two fixed constrains in every front wheelbase and rear wheelbase with direction Ux, Uy, and Uz
in fixed support. The boundary condition is defined in modelling, as shown in Fig. 3. The car chassis model is loaded
by static forces from the car body and passenger load. For this model, the maximum loaded weight of car and passenger
is 49,000 kg in vertical force (Y). The load is assumed as no-load in horizontal (X and Z), and a uniform load
distributed obtained from the maximum loaded weight divided by the total length of the chassis frame. Detail loading
of the model is shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 3. Structural constraints in the designed chassis.

Fig. 4. Loading condition for the finite element analysis.

5. Results and discussion

5.1. Displacement contours

Displacement, in mechanics, distance moved by a particle or body in a specific direction. The displacement of the
chassis and the location of maximum displacement of the AC Cobra Chassis is shown in Fig. 5. The results obtained
at the maximum Total of displacement are 0.3359 mm and minimum 0 N. At Normal XX, the maximum result is
0.03646 mm and minimum -0.02396 mm. The Normal YY maximum result is 0.04867 mm and a minimum -0.3359
mm. Also, at Normal ZZ, the maximum result is 0.02109 mm, and the minimum is -0.02005 mm.
40 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42
6 Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

Fig. 5. The result of structural displacement.

5.2. Stress-stain contours

Stress analysis is based on the mechanical properties of a material and its ability to withstand the anticipated loads.
In Fig. 6, it is shown that the results obtained based on the analysis that has been done. The results stress analysis
obtained at the maximum Von-Mises stress are 264.4 MPa, and the minimum is 0 MPa. The strain is the ratio between
the deformation and the original length. Think of strain as per cent elongation, how much bigger (or smaller) is the
object upon loading it. In Fig. 7, it is shown that the results obtained based on the analysis that has been done. The
results obtained at the maximum Normal XX are 4,515x10-4 and minimum -6,333x10-4. At Normal YY, the
maximum result is 6,294x10-4, and a minimum is -6,196 x10-4. The Normal ZZ provides a maximum result is 4.982
x10-4, and a minimum is -5.52 x10-4.

Fig. 6. The result of structural stress.

Fig. 7. The result of structural strain.

 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42 41
Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000 7

5.3. Reaction force

The reaction force is the force that arises due to an active force based on Newton's third law. The reaction force
does not work on the same object with the force of action even though the magnitude is the same. It means that if there
is a pair of forces in the opposite direction and the same magnitude. In Fig. 8, it is shown that the results obtained
based on the analysis that has been done. The results obtained at the maximum Total of reaction force are 368.6 N and
minimum 0 N. At Normal XX, the maximum result is 209.3 N and minimum -208 N. The Normal YY maximum
result is 257.7 N and minimum -299.9 N. Also, at Normal ZZ, maximum result 281.4 N and minimum -306.2 N.

a b

Fig. 8. The result of reaction force in normal direction. (a) X axis; (b) Y axis; (c) Z axis.

5.4. Safety factor

Safety factor or Safety figures are one important parameter to determine whether a construction is safe or not.
Safety Factor is a comparison between the permitted voltage of the material and the stress that occurs. Construction
is declared safe if the safety number is above one. From the analysis results on the designed chassis, safety factor
maximum at 15 and minimum at 1.153 (see Fig. 9). This result can be seen with a color orientation after the process
simulation done.

Fig.9. The result of safety factor.

42 Imam Abdul Majid et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 33 (2021) 35–42
8 Majid et al. / Structural Integrity Procedia 00 (2019) 000–000

From the analysis results on the chassis, safety factor maximum at 15 and minimum at 1.153. This result can be
seen with a colour orientation after the process simulation done. The simulation of the designed ladder frame type
chassis referring to AC Cobra, including displacement, stress, strain, reaction force, and safety factor based on FE
analysis, is presented in Table 4.

Table 4. The overall results of the designed chassis analysis using FE analysis.
Result Parameter Minimum Maximum
Total 0.0 mm 0.3359 mm
XX -0.02396 mm 0.03646 mm
Displacement
YY -0.3359 mm 0.04867 mm
ZZ -0.02005 mm 0.02109 mm
Von-Mises 0.0 MPa 264.4 MPa
Stress 1st Principal -38.15 MPa 194 MPa
3rd Principal -262.2 MPa 26.79 MPa
XX -6.333 x10-4 4.515 x 10-4
Strain YY -6.196 x10-4 6.294 x 10-4
ZZ -5.52 x10-4 4.982 x 10-4
Total 0N 368.6 N
XX -208 N 219.3 N
Reaction Force
YY -299.9 N 257.7 N
ZZ -306.2 N 281.4 N
Safety Factor - 1.153 15

6. Conclusions

Analysis of the designed car chassis referring to AC Cobra is carried out, aiming to find out how much
displacement, stress, strain, reaction force, and safety factor. Computational investigation of ladder frame chassis
referring to AC Cobra has been carried out. In general, the chassis is safe enough to be used for sports car because it
has already tested through FEA simulation. The maximum displacement is 0.3359 mm with a 1.153 safety factor, and
the maximum von-Mises stress of the chassis is 264.4 MPa. It means that the chassis can hold 4900 N vertical load
and still deform elastically and even under allowable material properties. Modern engineering CAD tools and FEA
software were extensively applied, which also contributed to reliable project during the endurance and functional tests.

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