How Michelin designs tires that are more resistant to aquaplaning thanks to digital simulation

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You might think at first glance that there is nothing more basic than the tire in the automotive world. However, it is regularly the scene of innovations that are largely based on digital simulation. Michelin, a French pioneer in the sector, invests heavily in research and development to ensure that it remains at the forefront of the industry.

 "To create the best possible products in a very competitive environment, we need to be able to integrate the latest innovations in terms of materials, tread and architecture of the tire, Explain Yohan Le Chenadec, adhesion performance manager at the Technology Center Michelin. And the only way to do it effectively, by constantly testing and improving the tire during its design, is digital simulation. "

Better manage hydroplaning …

In this context, Michelin works in particular with the Nantes start-up Nextflow Software, specialist in simulation applied to fluid mechanics. The young shoot was founded in 2015 and comes from the research laboratory of the École centrale com Nantes. Michelin uses one of its software called SPH-flow. It is based on the so-called "smoothed particle hydrodynamics" method, which represents fluid flows in the form of particles.

 "This allows us to dispense with a complicated and cumbersome step required by other methods: the fluid-structure mesh, details Vincent Perrier, CEO of Nextflow Software. It is usually necessary to specify the 3D environment in which one operates, nespeciallye volume of fluid. However, a mesh method cannot respond to the simulation of a complex environment such as a deforming tire, which is in motion, which is in a given volume of water. "

Concretely, by coupling the solid tire model from Michelin and the fluid mechanics model from Nextflow, which deals with the interaction of water on the road, it is possible to perform a simulation in just one hour. that it can take a week by making a mesh. And above all it becomes possible to simulate much more complex scenarios.

 "Nextflow’s technology allows us to really go beyond the limits we’ve faced before in hydroplaning simulation, explicit Yohan Le Chenadec. We can for example simulate the roughness of the stones on the road, which was impossible until then. " This also allows a finer representation of the tire, which takes into account all the complexity of its grooves. This better fidelity gives a more exact simulation.

… including on a worn tire

It is mainly thanks to these methods that Michelin is able to produce tires with outstanding longevity. "For hydroplaning, the possible vacuum volume for storing and discharging water decreases with wear, remember Yohan Le Chenadec. However, we want it to remain efficient despite this. We can therefore imagine hidden hollows, grooves which open gradually so that the tire retains the capacity to evacuate water. This is one of our innovations that is already on the market. "

Obviously, Michelin continues to produce physical prototypes to validate the accuracy of the simulations and be able to move on to production. But this use of digital technology makes it possible to Review more, better and further upstream, in order to only produce prototypes in the final stages of design. "You should know that we have more than 400 simulation tools to design the tires, advanced Yohan Le Chenadec. The goal is to limit the trial and error side, to do it right the first time. " In the end, savings and above all time savings which allow to speed up the time to market.

This is a global trend in the automotive industry, both among OEMs and manufacturers. "The first phases of proposing pneumatic solutions that we adapt to a vehicle are starting to be done completely virtual, we send digital models to manufacturers instead of sending physical prototypes," reveals Yohan Le Chenadec.

Julien Bergounhoux

 @JBergounhoux 

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