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Conventionally, molds for metal injection molding (MIM) process are fabricated using metallic materials using conventional machining processes. Machined metal molds are resilient and therefore could be suitable for mass production of MIM parts. However, with the process of mass production leading to permanent hard tooling, the design is subjected to rigorous testing and iteration before finalization. During design analysis and the iteration process, the demand for MIM parts (part demand) is at low-volume. Therefore, machined metal molds could be costly and time consuming for low volume and customized end-use products. 3D printed molds could be a suitable choice for MIM production for such applications. The present study compares the performance of Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) 3D printing (3DP) process made polymer molds with an aluminum mold for potential use in MIM process. It was observed that 3DP molds could successfully be used for a limited number of MIM cycles.

This paper presents a method of designing a full electrical power steering system to replace a hydraulic power-assisted steering system with improved performance and benefits including energy saving, improved steering 'feel', simpler construction and environmental gain. The designed performance of the electrical power steering system represented an ideal hydraulic power-assisted steering power boost curve which was mathematically modelled to provide the required control characteristic for the electrical power steering system, including variation in the perceived power assistance with the vehicle's forward speed. A full electrical power steering system provides all the torque necessary to steer the wheels, and the steering feel is artificially generated by an electric 'feedback' motor which provides resistance to the driver's input. The performance of the electrical power steering system described in this paper was enhanced by manipulating the reactive torque to the driver's input at the steering wheel so that it depended upon the driving conditions. Full-vehicle software models were generated using ADAMS/car software based on an actual car fitted with hydraulic power-assisted steering and full electrical power steering. The simulation results from both models were compared, and it is concluded that the steering performances of both systems were similar but the steering feel of the full electrical power steering system could be tuned to provide improved feedback to the driver in use. The performance of the full electrical power steering system could be further improved with the introduction of a controller to manipulate the steering feel during undesired conditions.

Abstract:The fundamentals and preliminary analyses of an innovative future technology referred to as 'semi-active steering' (SAS) are presented in this article. The proposed steering system configuration is similar to a conventional electrical power-assisted steering with the replacement of the rigid steering shaft with a low stiffness resilient shaft (LSRS), the presence of which allows 'active control' to be performed on vehicles similar to the concept of full steer-by-wire (SBW). But, unlike SBW, the LSRS is an integral part of the system characteristics. The advantages of the semi-active system in comparison with SBW and other conventional systems are demonstrated. A mathematical model to predict the mechanical properties of the LSRS has been developed, and experiments were conducted on a medium-sized car fitted with an LSRS to verify that vehicle stability and drivability can be ensured in the event of active system failure. The results have indicated that the vehicle was stable and safe to be driven at low speeds, and is predicted to be driveable and safe at higher speeds. It is concluded that an SAS system of this type has the potential to improve the safety of SBW systems.

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