The modern, ever shorter development process of powertrains incorporates many disciplines of mechanical engineering. Among these, the dynamic and acoustic behavior—which is often referred to as noise, vibration, harshness (NVH)—is becoming increasingly important for the consumer’s purchase decision. However, NVH is often only considered in the last steps of the product development as both experimental analysis methods and high-fidelity modeling approaches are time-consuming. In contrast, in early phases of the development process, fast iteration cycles are crucial. Thus, the engineer needs appropriate NVH models for each phase of the development process in order to evaluate design and concept decisions with respect to their NVH implications.This publication shows a methodological guide on how to apply suitable NVH models forward directed in different stages of the development process and thus efficiently implement optimizations. In the early, highly iterative phases of the development process, analytical determination of the excitation behavior as well as simplified finite element simulations are carried out in order to estimate the vibration behavior of the concept. For the first elaborated geometries, frequency response functions can then be determined and thus the influence of e.g. ribbings to NVH behavior can be evaluated. In the later phases, where advanced simulation models have to be set up, a fully parameterized eMBS model of the drivetrain enables an analysis of its operating behavior, from which further optimization potential of the system can be derived. The proposed method is demonstrated on the example of a tractor transaxle development process.

Many different engineering models are used in the development of technical systems such as the electro-mechanical drive train. The goal of utilising these models is to predict the physical behaviour of the system by virtually testing it. Already existing engineering models have to be identified and reused, to increase the efficiency of the development process. The model-based systems engineering (MBSE) approach motego [1, 2] supports the development of mechanical systems in a holistic and function-oriented manner. The system solution and the solution element are core elements in motego, that realise specific functions. The solution element contains the principle solution and domain models (e.g. engineering models), while the system solution contains solution elements and domain models. The system solution and especially the solution element provides a meaningful structure for organising and reusing models.However, in literature those solution elements are not identified and structured yet. This is also true for the electro-mechanical drive train, which is used as case for this study. It is assumed the solution elements can be identified by analysing the interaction between active surfaces of parts in contact. This contribution proposes a classification procedure for solution elements, which is based on elementary functions and principle solutions as they are elements of established development methods.

The work stream CRD-C.I of the Cluster of Excellence Internet of Production focuses on the topic of agile product development in order to enable reduced lead-times as well as exceeded customer and user satisfaction in product development. The main emphasis of the research lies on the associated processes and structures. In the course of the first 3 years of the Internet of Production, answers to relevant research questions of agile product development were developed within and between the research areas of market development, organization, data and engineering as well as production of prototypes. This chapter presents selected focus areas and insights from these research areas.

New emission regulations and the associated mobility transition has led to an increased demand for new drivetrain concepts. These new cross-domain concepts, such as electromechanical drivetrains, are characterized by a high number of interactions between components which must be tested to ensure the functionality of the developed system. To achieve a short time-to-market, it is necessary to test subsystems and components early in the development process. Although virtual testing through simulation offers cost-effective solutions, physical testing remains essential for validating real physical behavior. Nevertheless, due to high costs and disparate delivery times of components, physical testing alone is insufficient. To counteract, Hardware-in-the-Loop (HiL) testing can be performed to combine the benefits of physical and virtual testing in the early stages of development, particularly when not all components are yet physically available. However, the problem arises, that for HiL testing a virtual HiL model must be available which suits the individual test case consisting of the Device Under Test (DUT) and the associated purpose of the test including the test bench on which the test will be performed. These models must be created with high manual effort. To counteract reusability can be achieved by using predefined model elements. Therefore, we present an approach for creating configurable HiL models. For this approach, a vehicle model consisting of standardized, modular model element for each subsystem is set up to be used for HiL testing. Modularization of models ensures quick and easy adjustment and efficient product development which is also beneficial for the creation of HiL models. The created vehicle model serves as a basis for all required HiL models which can then configured. For the configuration a workflow is developed which allows an automatic derivation of the required HiL model by considering the defined test case.

Today’s systems are becoming increasingly complex due to the multitude of interactions between subsystems. This is also true for the electromechanical drivetrain and its physically interacting cooling system. In order to provide a virtual representation of such systems, including system architecture and product behaviour, model-based systems engineering (MBSE) introduces system models. System models are built using system elements and reoccurring models. MBSE, therefore, enhances the efficient development of complex systems by promoting model reuse in interdisciplinary architectural modelling. The reuse of models, such as calculation models, reduces redundancy, accelerates development iterations, and streamlines consistency. However, there is a lack of standardised and reusable model libraries to facilitate this reuse. In the approach in this paper, the reusability of those models is facilitated by the system elements, referred to as “solution elements”. MBSE system elements enable the structuring, reuse, and organization of models within model libraries. The identification of these system elements for heat-exchanging systems, however, remains an open challenge. Consequently, the aim of this paper is to develop a method for systematically identifying system elements in heat-exchanging systems, providing a formalized approach to reusing thermal models. The method focuses on functional and heat-transfer processes at the contact level referred to here as thermal contacts. The developed method is demonstrated through a case study of a thermal management system (TMS) of an electric truck. It is shown that a small set of recurring system elements can be used to represent a large number of individual thermal interactions, within TMS components and, therefore, streamline modelling efficiency significantly.