Automotive engineering facts for kids

Automotive engineering is a cool field that deals with designing, building, and making vehicles work. Think of it as the science behind cars, trucks, and motorcycles! It's a type of vehicle engineering, just like designing airplanes (aerospace engineering) or ships (naval architecture).

Automotive engineers use ideas from many different types of engineering. These include mechanical (how things move), electrical (power and circuits), electronic (small circuits), software (computer programs), and safety engineering (making sure vehicles are safe).

Their main job is to create and test vehicles or their parts. This goes from the first idea all the way to the final product. The three main parts of this job are creating new ideas, developing them, and then manufacturing (making) the vehicles.

What Automotive Engineers Do

Automotive engineering covers many exciting areas. Engineers work on different parts of a vehicle to make sure it's safe, efficient, and fun to drive.

Making Cars Safe

Safety engineering is all about making vehicles safe in a crash. Engineers test cars to see how they protect people inside. They follow strict rules set by governments.

• They check if seat belts and air bags work correctly.
• They do crash tests, hitting the car from the front or side.
• They also test how likely a car is to roll over.

Engineers use special computer programs to simulate crashes. They also use crash-test dummies in real crash tests. This helps them see how the car deforms and how people would be affected.

Visualization of how a car deforms in an asymmetrical crash using finite element analysis.

Saving Fuel and Reducing Pollution

Fuel economy means how much fuel a vehicle uses. It's measured in miles per gallon or kilometers per liter. Engineers try to make cars use less fuel.

Emissions are the gases that come out of a vehicle's exhaust. Engineers measure these gases, like carbon dioxide (CO₂), to make sure they meet environmental rules. They work to reduce harmful pollution from cars.

Making Vehicles Quiet and Smooth

NVH engineering stands for Noise, Vibration, and Harshness. This is about how a vehicle feels and sounds to the driver and passengers.

• Noise can be rattles, squeals, or engine sounds.
• Vibration can be felt in the seat or steering wheel.
• Engineers work to remove bad noises and vibrations. They can also make good sounds, like a cool exhaust tone, even better!

Vehicle Electronics

Automotive electronics are super important in modern cars. Today's vehicles have many electronic systems.

• These systems control things like the throttle (how much gas the engine gets), brakes, and steering.
• They also manage comfort features like air conditioning (HVAC), music and navigation (infotainment), and lights.
• Without electronics, cars couldn't meet today's safety and fuel-saving rules.

Vehicle Performance

Performance is how well a vehicle does in different situations. It's about how fast a car can go or stop.

• How quickly it can speed up (like from 0 to 60 mph).
• Its top speed (disambiguation) top speed.
• How fast it can stop from a certain speed.
• How well it handles turns without losing grip.
• Performance also includes how well the car drives in bad weather, like snow or rain.

Smooth Gear Shifts

Shift quality is how a driver feels when an automatic transmission changes gears.

• It's about how smooth the car feels when it speeds up and shifts to a higher gear.
• Or how it feels when it shifts down to a lower gear for passing.
• Engineers also check how the car feels when shifting from Park to Reverse.

Making Vehicles Last Longer

Durability and corrosion engineering mean making sure a vehicle lasts a long time.

• Engineers test cars by driving them for many miles.
• They also test them in tough conditions, like driving on rough roads or through salty water. This helps prevent corrosion (rust).

How Vehicles Respond to Driving

Drivability is how a vehicle responds to everyday driving.

• This includes how it starts when cold.
• How smoothly it idles.
• How it feels when you first press the gas pedal.

Managing Costs

Cost is a big part of designing a vehicle. Engineers need to think about:

• How much it costs to make each car.
• The initial costs of designing and setting up factories.
• They also consider costs related to warranties and marketing.

Project Timelines

Program timing is about making sure new car models are ready for the market at the right time. Every new part must fit into the schedule for development and manufacturing.

Easy to Build

Assembly feasibility means making sure a car's parts are easy to put together in the factory.

• A good design is not only functional but also simple and cheap to build.
• Engineers work together to make sure the final design can be assembled easily without mistakes.

Quality Control

Quality management is very important in making cars. High quality means customers are happy and companies avoid expensive recalls.

• The International Automotive Task Force (IATF) created a standard called ISO/TS 16949. This standard helps make sure cars are designed, developed, and made with high quality.
• Companies like Ford Motor Company and Toyota Motor Company use a method called total quality management (TQM). This helps them keep improving how they make cars.

Automotive Engineering Jobs

There are different roles for automotive engineers. Each role focuses on a specific part of making a vehicle.

Development Engineer

A development engineer makes sure all the different parts of a vehicle work together perfectly. This includes cars, trucks, buses, and motorcycles. They follow rules from the car maker, the government, and what customers want.

• They are like systems engineers for cars. They make sure all systems, like the brakes or engine, work well on their own and also together.
• For example, the brakes must stop the car, but they also need to feel right (not too spongy) and not make too much noise.
• Development engineers also make trade-offs. For instance, a powerful engine might use more fuel. They find the right balance between power and fuel economy.
• They organize tests for the whole vehicle to make sure everything works as it should. For example, they check if the car's radio works well without interference from other electronics.

Manufacturing Engineer

Manufacturing engineers make sure that car parts or whole vehicles are built correctly and safely. While development engineers design how the car works, manufacturing engineers figure out how to actually build it.

• They design the machines and tools needed to build car parts.
• They plan how to mass-produce the product efficiently.
• Their goal is to make the factory work better and faster. They use methods like lean manufacturing to reduce waste.

Other Automotive Engineering Roles

Many other engineers help create vehicles:

• Aerodynamics engineers help design the car's shape to cut through the air easily. This makes the car more efficient and look good.
• Body engineers figure out if the car's outer panels can actually be made from the designs.
• Change control engineers manage all the design and manufacturing changes that happen during a car's development.
• NVH engineers (Noise, Vibration, and Harshness) test sounds and vibrations. They work to prevent loud noises inside the car and make sure the ride is smooth.

See also

In Spanish: Ingeniería automotriz para niños