Tesla's Innovative Approach to Optimizing Design Cycle with Automated CAE Connector Creation

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Tesla Motors, a high-profile electric car manufacturer, was seeking ways to optimize its development cycle to expedite the production of high-quality vehicles. A significant challenge was the time-consuming process of preparing the finite element analysis (FEA) model, particularly the connector portion of its CAE model. The Model S sedan, for instance, had over 300 different fixings and more than 6,000 weld points, including welds, bolts, rivets, adhesives, and MIG welds. The most laborious task was recreating these connectors in the CAD model, which could take up to several days. This process was not only inefficient but also prone to errors, as there was a risk of overlooking a MIG weld or adhesive due to the lack of detail in the CAD file about the type of connector used, its mechanical properties, and the panels it was connecting.

Tesla Motors, founded in 2003 by Elon Musk, is a globally recognized electric vehicle manufacturer. The company's mission is to launch mass-marketed electric vehicles that appeal to buyers unimpressed with the quality and performance of first-generation electric car offerings. Tesla's strategy involves introducing high-end, high-performance sports cars to establish the viability and appeal of electric cars, followed by more affordable models for mainstream buyers. Since the launch of its first model, the Roadster, in 2008, Tesla has sold over 2,300 units and received orders for 6,900 Model S sedans in the last quarter of 2013 alone, marking a 25% increase over the previous quarter.

To address this challenge, Tesla's simulation team, in collaboration with Altair, a CAE vendor, automated the connector creation process in the CAE model. They developed a connector (CNX) CAD structure, which included tags on the connector entities for consistency in naming and tree structure. This allowed the data to be easily extracted with a search string. They also created a CNX data merge tool, which generated an Excel file depicting CATIA geometric entities, connection types, and other attributes. An Excel macro was used to mark all relevant geometric entities in the spreadsheet for export based on the search string provided by the design engineer. Finally, a HyperMesh TCL script was developed to import the updated CATIA files into HyperMesh, create all the CAE connection elements for the various weld types, and highlight any connectors that failed to be created. This solution not only eliminated manual labor but also reduced the model creation process by a couple of days.

• The automation of the CAE connector creation process in HyperMesh has not only streamlined Tesla's design cycle but also improved the quality of its FEA models by minimizing the risk of errors. By saving time on the model creation process, the Tesla CAE engineers have been able to redirect their efforts towards more in-depth analysis studies. This has enhanced the overall efficiency and effectiveness of Tesla's simulation team, allowing them to focus on more critical aspects of the vehicle design process. Furthermore, the solution was designed to have minimal impact on how engineers worked with CATIA or HyperMesh, ensuring a smooth transition and adoption of the new process.

• Reduced the model creation process by a couple of days
• Eliminated manual labor involved in recreating connectors in the CAD model
• Enabled efficient extraction of connector data from the CAD file