抄録
In current automotive development, innovations to reduce development time and to use a virtual prototype have been numerous and progressive. Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) has played an important role in these innovations. CAE numerically estimates the performance of automobiles and proposes alternative ideas that lead to higher performance without building physical prototypes. However, current CAE cannot usually be used at the initial design phase due to their sophisticated, difficult, and complex functions and characteristics. In this paper, we propose a new concept of CAE, First Order Analysis (FOA), in order to overcome these problems. The basic ideas include (1) graphic interfaces using Microsoft/Excel (2) use of sophisticated formulations based on the theory of mechanics of material, (3) the topology optimization method. Further, some prototypes of software are presented to confirm the method for FOA.
