Managing Editor of Future Vehicle magazine, Steve Welch, interviewed Mike Dempsey, Managing Director, and Alessandro Picarelli, engineering Director, of Claytex prior to the Future Propulsion Conference 2023.
Better products, faster
The past year has seen Claytex complete some high-profile simulation projects in all areas of high performance automotive.
Simulation is now a central part of every new vehicle development process, allowing engineers to virtually test components, modules, powertrains, and entire vehicles. Claytex operates at the cutting edge of automotive engineering and advanced motorsport. The business is the UK’s leading Dymola and Modelica specialists. Mike Dempsey, Claytex’s MD, says customers benefit from the businesses’ adaptable, flexible, and solution-oriented approach – empowering them to achieve their technical and business objectives faster and more efficiently than ever before.
Future Vehicle Magazine – FPC2023 Show Issue
The past year has seen Claytex complete several high-profile simulation projects in all areas of high-performance automotive. “We’ve developed an incredible library of suspension parts, shock absorbers, gearboxes, engines, and more,” Dempsey said. “We can bring together on the computer and effectively build up the vehicle with these different components to enable us to create highly detailed and accurate simulations.” 2022 has been another busy year for the business, so where does Dempsey want to begin? Claytex recently completed a customer project to develop and implement real-time cooling and lubrication system models for Italian sports car builder Dallara..
Specifically, the company managed a driver-in-the-loop vehicle development project for a new hypercar. Dallara wanted support with digital models to enable them to assess derating strategies for hot climate conditions to inform heat exchanger design. Claytex and Dallara use the same modelling platform, Dymola, powered by Modelica libraries, which makes it easy for the companies to collaborate. “We’re helping them through consulting to build system models,” Dempsey said. “The objective was to get the cooling system module fast enough and efficient enough in terms of computational efficiency.”
While much simulation is done virtually, Dallara wanted to use human drivers to optimise designs and performance in a simulator, explains Alessandro Picarelli, Engineering Director. “Dallara can plug the physics models we create in Dymola into its driving simulator where a human driver can drive around a virtual track,” Picarelli said. Hypercars push components and systems to their limits to deliver performance; even minute adjustments can impact how a vehicle feels. While machines can optimise systems, humans provide insights that elevate a hypercar to the next level. “There’s a subjective element of how the driver feels and how they experience a vehicle – particularly when driving a car at the limit. There’s more a human driver can do than any of the robot drivers or simulation drivers can replicate,” Picarelli said.
Read the full article here: Better products, faster
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