Prediction of automotive HVAC duct acoustic properties via innovative simulation techniques

Abstract

For the automotive industry, acoustic comfort is of increasing importance.Customer expectations and strong competition in the market play an importantrole to accelerate vehicle development activities. Although the primary functionof HVAC (Heating ventilation and Air-conditioning) is thermal comfort of theoccupant during ride; acoustic comfort is also important when it comes tocustomer satisfaction resulting in overall experience of the vehicle. Hence,prediction of cabin interior noise in the early design stage plays an important rolein designing a superior quality product.In this paper, cabin interior noise levels generated by HVAC systems arepredicted by using computational 1-D (one dimensional) analysis. 3-D (threedimensional) CAD geometry is designed using SOLIDWORKS and 1-D analysisis done on GT-Suite. Main purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how 1-Dsimulation can be an aid for a duct designer by predicting the NVH characteristicof HVAC Ducts and continuing the research to shorten the product developmenttimelines.