Protoyping material helps Audi dominate Le Mans

The Audi Sport design team is using state-of-the-art technologies including DSM Somos ProtoFunctional materials and the high-tech prototypes of the service and prototyping company Alphaform AG

For two consecutive years, Audi Sport has dominated the prestigious Le Mans 24-hour race.

The realization of Audi's superior endurance performance vehicles is testimony to the innovative synergies of the Audi Sport design team situated at the group's headquarters in Ingolstadt (Germany), and to their adoption of state-of-the-art technologies, including the ProtoFunctional materials of DSM Somos and the high-tech prototypes of the service and prototyping company Alphaform AG.

Starting with a blank sheet of paper in January 1998, Audi took its place on the Podium in Le Mans just 18 months later.

The development of subsequent models for the victory races in 2000 and 2001 each took just 51 weeks.

Taking into account that the cars are 100% Audi design, Audi technology and Audi production, this is an outstanding achievement.

Success depends on a strong goal orientation and a close relationship with technology specialists in the Audi Research and Development departments as well as with high-tech suppliers such as Alphaform AG.

Part of Audi Sport's winning formula in Le Mans was the fact that the rear-end structure could be removed and replaced as a complete part.

Should the need arise, this concept allows Audi Sport to reduce its pit-stop time to an absolute minimum.

There is an unwritten law in Le Mans that the race can be won or lost in the pit.

In effect Audi was able to complete a stop for re-fuelling, tyre change and replacement of the rear-end structure in just 5 minutes and 22 seconds.

Until Audi turned up in Le Mans, a pit-stop time of 30 minutes was considered 'excellent'.

Concealed in the revolutionary rear-end structure of the Audi R8 was a concept in which the oil-tank 'bore' a major role, acting as support function between the motor and the gear-box as well as performing other critical load-bearing functions.

Since the oil-tank was so critical and the development schedule so limited, Audi Sport asked the German technology specialist Alphaform AG to produce a prototype from the Somos 7120 ProtoFunctional resin.

The main concern of Audi Sport was the dynamic behaviour of the oil under the extreme dynamic 'G' forces associated with speeds of over 300 kmph.

The Somos prototype made by Alphaform AG allowed Audi Sport to complete the dynamic fluid-flow analysis and elaborate necessary modifications to the design before going into final production of the magnesium metal-cast part.

Audi Sport was impressed by the accuracy, robustness and heat tolerance of the particularly complex and intricate Somos 7120 prototype.

The development team consider the possibility to submit prototypes to such exacting tests as 'revolutionary'.

Ralf Deuke, Business Manager, Stereolithography Technologies at Alphaform AG comments: "Since Alphaform provides an integrated prototyping service we are constantly working with a wide range of high technology materials.

The physical properties of the Somos range of stereolithography resins, are in our opinion, second to none, allowing Alphaform to meet it's strategic goal of providing accurate, functional prototypes in the shortest possible lead-time.

The oil-tank we produced for AudiSport was a challenge we enjoyed.

Alphaform is proud of the fact that it could make an important contribution to the amazing achievement of Audi Sport." What is stereolithography? Stereolithography is a layer additive rapid-prototyping process based on the use of photopolymer liquid resins which solidify when exposed to UV light.

A software program transfers the designer's 3-D CAD model into an electronic file for stereolithography machines ('STL' format), composing the information into thin cross sections or layers.

A laser beam then traces each layer onto the surface of a vat of photopolymer resin, building the part in repeated layers until a solid replica of the original CAD model is completed.

DSM Somos ProtoFunctional resins range from the industry's first flexible resins for material properties similar to polyethylene (Somos 8100 series) or polypropylene (Somos 9100 series) to the latest generation of heat-resistant, humidity-tolerant, high-accuracy epoxy resins suitable for investment casting and direct tooling applications (Somos 7100 series).

Each family of Somos photopolymer epoxy resins is comprised of materials singularly formulated and optimised for the variety of stereolithography platforms commercially available: Somos XX'00' resins are for use in Argon ion laser systems; Somos XX'10' for Helium Cadmium laser systems; Somos XX'20' resins for platforms utilising Solid State laser systems.

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