Citation

Zhang S, Prater G. Int. J. Veh. Des. 2011; 57(1): 1-16.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, Inderscience Publishers)

DOI

10.1504/IJVD.2011.043591

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Gauge sensitivity indices assess the structural performance of vehicle body architectures when subjected to changes in material thickness as a result of either same material re-gauging or material substitutions. This paper summarises the theory of gauge sensitivity indices and demonstrates the index results through a series of example cases with complex sections and different loading conditions. The results are consistent in showing that gauge sensitivity values are always greater than or equal to unity. It denotes that while low gauge sensitivity values imply a perfect structure with near-uniform internal load distribution, large values correspond to the progressive development of an internal load distribution that becomes increasingly non-uniform. The work concludes with validation case studies illustrating application of gauge sensitivity indices for assessing structural stiffness of a light-duty truck cab.


Keywords: gauge sensitivity; vehicle body stiffness; structural stiffness; vehicle body-in-white; weight reduction; material thickness; internal load distribution; vehicle design; light-duty trucks; truck cabs.