Other partners in CAMISMA, which began in 2011 and was subsidized by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, are Evonik Industries, HBW Gubesch, Toho Tenax Europe, and RWTH Aachen University.

The team worked with four different components: steel and fiberglass-reinforced plastic (FRP), as well as innovative carbon fiber non-woven and thermoplastic tapes made of carbon filaments.

The four materials are combined in a complex, multilayer structure. In a newly-developed thermoplastic forming process, carbon fiber is used to produce the basic form of the seat. Carbon filaments reinforce defined zones within the structure in order to provide the required strength, as does the FRP injection-molded rib structure. In addition, fasteners for the foam, seat covers, and safety devices such as airbags, are integrated into the rib-shaped FRP parts. Specially layered steel adapter components, which are first inserted into the tool and over molded, are used to mount the two seat adjusters. The adjustment mechanisms are then fastened to the seat in a separate work stage by means of laser welds.

In September 2014, results of an initial physical crash test designed to simulate a rear impact demonstrated that the seat prototype satisfied the strength requirements. For the test, the CAMISMA seat prototype was attached to a conventional seat sub-structure. A current seat with a metal structure from large-scale series production, including the relevant strength values served as a reference for the team.

Although carbon-fiber products generally offer outstanding characteristics, such as great strength and design flexibility, they are too expensive for use in the large-scale series production of vehicles. With CAMISMA, our goal was to create cost-efficient, sustainable access to carbon-fiber-based materials systems.

—Andreas Eppinger, group vice president technology management, Johnson Controls Automotive Experience

Through maximum functional integration, the manufacturing steps required in assembly were also substantially reduced through the number of attachment parts needed (from 12 to one, compared with the reference seat), which in turn compensates some of the additional cost.

An innovative industrial manufacturing process, the volume of which can be estimated at about 200,000 units per production line and year, enables the highly concentrated, efficient use of carbon fiber, which in the non woven is planned to be mainly composed of recycled raw materials.

Going forward, an attempt will be made to cover the visible surfaces of CAMISMA seats during the production process and thus to enable attractive design and differentiation possibilities in the interior.

The CAMISMA research project will run until the spring of 2015. These seats will be available in vehicles in 2019, according to current planning.

Resources

• A. Köver (2014) “Simulation and Manufacturing of an Automotive Part for Mass Production” ITHEC 2014