Register here!

Calling all electric car freaks, online community nutters, 3D wackos, product design gurus . . . what have I missed?

We’re organising an event that you’ve all been waiting for! It’s all about sharing ideas on how to develop an electric car online via communities from all over the world.  And it’s happening November 22.

We’ll also be announcing an online project that’s going to happen in collaboration with 40 Fires using our new suite of online products (CATIA V6 Online & 3DSwYm).

We’ve got a fantastic line up of speakers, for example:

• Paul Lomangino from Tesla Motors
• Hugo Spowers from Riversimple/40 Fires;
• Dr Shimizu from SIM Drive;
• Jay Rogers from Local Motors;
• Richard Bruges from Unipart (suppliers looking for a common platform to develop EV components);
• AKKA Technologies;

So what are you waiting for, register today (free) for our Community Based e-Car Development conference at www.3ds.com/CBeCD

The ECF is the 23rd and 24th November, why not go to both?

Yours sustainably,

Jonathan

P.S. For more about this sort of thing, check out my previous posts:

• Open Innovation, Empowerment and Exploitation
• Car development is child’s play!
• Riversimple Urban Car: Simply a Revolution!

Energy.  Some people predict that our next wars will be fought over who has possession of energy and its distribution.  The planet’s population and energy appetite is growing, but our resources are not.  What to do? 

Ramping up to next week’s National Innovation Directors Meetings, I wanted to see if I could learn the secret of innovation as it pertains to the Energy Industry.  We’re all told we need innovation to build a sustainable future, and this couldn’t be truer for energy. 

Here’s a little interview with Areva T&D’s (Transmission and Distribution) Eco Design & Innovation Director, Jean-Luc Bessède, also a speaker at the event. 

I also threw in a question about the future of eco design. 

Note that Areva T&D’s mission is to offer “reliable, efficient and environmentally-friendly solutions to improve network stability and make electricity available everywhere.”
–
1. Your title is Innovation & Eco Design Director. Where do you separate the two? Isn’t Eco Design where we must focus all of our innovation today?

JLB:  Of course, we must focus all of our innovation today towards eco-friendly solutions.  This is particularly the case in our energy sector, where the increase of renewables, the need for energy efficiency and the reduction of the CO2 emissions will be major drivers in the years to come.

At Areva T&D, our eco-design program formally began more than 10 years ago.  However, eco design is still a new area for engineering, and our program aims at giving tools and methodology to our design teams to enhance the capability of the designer to create innovative eco-friendly solutions that would also fit with customer expectations.

In our search for Green solutions, we also have to deal with cost reductions, improvement of performance, better reliability, tighter development planning or more stringent qualification programs. And our global innovation strategy and programs stand for these.

2. What are the most innovative eco design projects that you’re working on right now?

JLB:  First of all, we are developing a Green Services offer.  We are also developing innovative electrical network management tools that will allow us to improve the global energy efficiency and power quality deliveries to the end-users.  Additionally we are developing eco-friendly solutions for power transformers or swithchgear.
 
3. What’s your secret for innovation, and how do you ensure you’re always pushing the limits further?

JLB:  Unfortunately, there is no secret . . . and innovation is mostly a question of perspective.  It could be considered as a process, as the result of a development strategy, as a commercial success, a technological breakthrough, a sociological change, etc. 

However, three parameters appear to be essential in order to always be in the position to push the limits further :

• Strong expertise in our core business but also regarding the business of our customers;
• Numerous and deep relationships with external partners (universities, regulators, other companies…), including term collaboration agreements ; and
• Heavy investments in R&D.

 
4. Do you use 3D software and collaborative research platforms to invent your products? If so, how does this impact your innovation cycle? If not, why?

JLB:  3D software and collaborative tools are already used and some developments and deployment are running throughout the company. We take benefit from 3D software, to improve the reliability of our equipment and reduce development time through improved electrical and mechanical dimensioning.

Collaborative platforms are necessary for us, due to the spread of our R&D community in many countries and continents.

5. What do you think is the future of eco design?

JLB:  Eco-design is already a reality and applied in the everyday engineering job, in many industries.  But good and efficient tools which could simplify and accelerate the job are and will be more and more necessary.  This is, for sure, an area where further developments will appear.
—
Merci beaucoup Jean-Luc! 

Any questions you’d like me to ask Jean-Luc at next week’s National Innovation Directors Meetings ?

Best,

Kate

Crysomallon Squamiferum (Deep Sea Snail - MIT)

As the 2010 SIMULIA Customer Conference approaches, it reminds me of a thought-provoking presentation given by Dale Berry of SIMULIA at the 2009 SCC in London. He reminded the audience, of engineers and researchers, that  Realistic Simulation is not only good for evaluating mechanical behavior of product performance, but it’s also an indespenible tool for driving innovative research that improves our lives and society.

I personally think of the researchers who are applying realistic simulation as the ‘Unsung Heroes’ of product development. They are the ones using realistic simulation technology in amazing and creative ways to solve challenging issues facing our society, not just reduce time and costs of product development.

Here are a few examples of innovative research highlighed by Dale that  illustrate how realistic simulation can help improve our society. 

Sliced vew of a Coconut (Blekinge Inst of Tech)

Go Coconuts: Next time you think of renewable and biodegradable materials, think coconut fibers. Check out how researchers at Blekinge Institute of Technology are studying the mechanical properties of coconut fiber using Abaqus FEA.

These researchers are investigating how coconut fiber can be used as reinforcement in biodegradadable fabric and plastic containers, which could mean less landfill waste and less reliance on hydrocarbons to make plastic. 

Red Blood Cell Analysis (National Univ. of Singapore)

Blood Cell Research: Collaboration between researchers at MIT and theNational University of Singapore has resulted in deeper understanding of how disease, such as Malaria, affects red blood cells.

They are using Abaqus FEA to model and analyze the mechanical structure and deformation of red blood cells in response to disease progression. Such realistic simulation is enabling researchers to study the efficacy of treatments for diseases more efficiently.

Bad Vibrations: Vibration induced by trains or road traffic is a frequent problem for urban buildings and dwellings. Such vibrations can range from minor annoyance to significant building damage. A straightforward explanation on how vibrations occur and transfer to nearby structures can be found at Canada’s National Research Council’s website.

Vibration Barrier Analysis (Tokyo Inst of Tech)

Researchers at Tokyo Institute of Technology have used Abaqus FEA to evaluate how wave barriers can be improved to reduce vibration levels on nearby buildings. Check out their paper presented at the 2009 SIMULIA Customer Conference.

Now it’s your turn. What can you think of that could improve our lives or society? Better treatment for back pain? New technology for renewable energy? Better ways to dispose of hazardous waste?

Just do a simple search on Abaqus and ‘fill in your interest’. Here’s one to get you started; “Abaqus and Snail Armor”.

Let me know about the Unsung Heroes that you discover.
Tim