2012 Applus+Idiada iShare - AllCarIndex

The iShare is a new concept of urban vehicle designed by Applus IDIADA as a demonstrator of our complete vehicle development capabilities.

We believe that vehicle functionalities should be at the heart of the development process. The iShare shows our approach to a complete vehicle development project following the principle of development led by functionalities.

The iShare is the result of the integration of the vehicle development knowledge of Applus IDIADA’s engineering team.

With this project we demonstrate that we can conduct vehicle development projects from the beginning towards functional excellence.

The project started with a clear objective: to design and develop an urban mobility vehicle for car-sharing companies. This simple target has resulted in a very challenging project, with many innovations and new approaches to frequent questions which arise when developing a vehicle.

From the very beginning a multidisciplinary team from all the functional areas was involved in the project. Experts from active and passive safety, NVH, powertrain and electronics worked together with our experts in body, chassis and trim design.

The first goal was to identify the vehicle’s key functionalities, particularly those related to mobility and car-sharing. By means of a public survey and interviews with potential fleet operators, we were able to define the vehicle’s basic specifications.

DESIGN

Design engineering tools are at the core of the development process: from the style and surface creation, to the integration of the different components, taking care of the vehicle’s functional feasibility.

This allowed us to advance in package and lay-out studies of the iShare while at the same time coordinating the integration of components that make up the vehicle, ensuring our designs comply with the intended functionalities.

In the development of external and internal parts, we worked towards quick replacement assembly and an easy maintenance interior trim.

POWERTRAIN

The electric motor performances were defined in order to fulfill the objectives of maximum vehicle speed, climbing capacity and range without forgetting NVH and the user’s comfort.

The battery system including a charging manager module was designed to permit both home charging with a domestic plug and also public charging.

The inverter settings were adjusted to the vehicle characteristics and the powertrain was functionally validated for safe and reliable operation.

ACTIVE SAFETY

The active safety performance of the was managed from concept design to the optimization, tuning and validation of the chassis, steering and brakes, to achieve safe vehicle behavior but also to transmit driving pleasure and emotions.

Increasing complexity of these systems and the huge number of different vehicle configurations and variants pushes physical vehicle testing to its limit. We recognize this at an early stage here in IDIADA, applying simulation for the design, tuning and validation in the virtual environment.

ELECTRONICS

The electrical & electronic architecture, from the communication network to the car-sharing booking applications were all fully designed and developed by Applus IDIADA, creating a link between the vehicle systems and the car-sharing service.

We work to implement complex features through simple solutions and intuitive interactions with the user.

Developing an access system for the with a mobile phone and a barcode reader and providing a user-friendly information and assistance system are prime examples of our philosophy.

PASSIVE SAFETY

The Passive Safety development was a real challenge considering its small size and weight.

It was conceived to provide a good level of protection to its occupants thanks to its robust bodyshell, Car-to-car compatibility criteria and a complete restraint system were also taken into account.

The vehicle includes an integrated child restraint system allowing the vehicle to be used with children from 3 years’ old without any additional child restraint system.

The passive safety equipment is completed by the possibility of implementing an eCall system and an acoustic system to alert pedestrians of the arrival of a silent electric vehicle.

HOMOLOGATION

For the project, homologation engineers were involved from the concept phase till the final validation, thus avoiding last minute changes.

At IDIADA we have broad expertise as a Technical Service and more recently as a Worldwide Homologation consultant. IDIADA participates as a Technical Service on behalf of the Spanish Approval Authority in the main international forums where automotive regulations are being developed.

Our Homologation experts play a key role in assuring that legal technical requirements are taken into consideration in the product development projects we undertake.

SPECIFICATIONS

SOURCE: Applus+Idiada