Research on Simulation and Optimization of the Self-driving Minibus Frame Design

Vehicle frame plays a crucial role in ensuring the safety and performance of vehicles including autonomous vehicles. The frame needs sufficient rigidity to withstand the loads from various components and external forces during operation. Moreover, the frame is required to have minimize the weight to optimize the acceleration and energy consumption of the vehicle. In order to fabricate an optimal frame that ensures the requirements of durability and weight for autonomous vehicle, two frames (called XBUS 1.0 and XBUS 1.1) were proposed. Steel plates made XBUS 1.0, while XBUS 1.1 comprises steel plates and steel boxes. This study focuses on evaluating the durability of the two frames using the Finite Element Method (FEM). Static durability analysis and dynamic analysis were conducted in this research. The static analysis result shows that XBUS 1.1 indicates a 29% reduction in the maximum stress value, while the safety factor increases to 2.48 compared to XBUS 1.0. Dynamic analysis shows that at 14,726 Hz, the strongest oscillation will occur. In summary, the research has demonstrated that incorporating additional steel boxes and reducing the components’ thickness can reduce vehicle weight while still maintaining the durability of the frame, contributing to the development and production of energy-efficient and environmentally friendly minibus vehicles in the future.