Innovating a breakthrough in suspension design - SolidWorks

Innovating a breakthroughin suspension designTrek Bikes leverages 3D design and simulationtechnologies to create industry-leading suspensionon the Fuel EX mountain bikeThe Challenge> Establish a leadership position in themountain bike market similar to the positionTrek holds in road bike racing> Develop an innovative, better performingsuspension that leapfrogs competitivedesigns> Complete a major redesign on the FuelEX suspension design in the same timerequired for a minor upgradeThe Solution> Utilize SolidWorks ® 3D CAD softwarepowered by 64-bit Second-GenerationAMD Opteron processors to explore new,untried concepts in suspension design> Employ COSMOSMotion ® andCOSMOSWorks ® simulation and virtualprototyping tools on fast AMD Opteronprocessor-based workstations to analyze,examine, and test innovative designs> Use SolidWorks eDrawings ® files tocommunicate suspension design conceptsacross the design teamThe Impact> Accelerated time-to-market> Introduced industry-leading, Active BrakingPivot (ABP) suspension> Completed major breakthrough in the sametime as a minor upgrade> Launched a top-performing suspensiondesignAlthough Trek Bikes has had a strong presence in mountain bikeracing, including many titles and championship wins over the years,the company’s recent history-making success in the competitiveroad-racing market has overshadowed the mountain bike sector. Asa result of Lance Armstrong’s unprecedented, seven consecutiveTour de France victories on Trek road bikes, Trek concentrated muchof its research and development focus and effort on enhancingthe performance of its road bikes. While Trek has continued toproduce quality mountain bikes, until recently, the emphasis on roadbikes allowed competitors to make technological inroads and gaincompetitive advantage in the mountain bike market.In order to recapture its technological edgein mountain bikes, Trek designers andengineers set out to develop the kind ofbreakthrough innovations that haveestablished the company as thetechnology leader in road bikes.According to Trek Mountain Bike BrandManager Michael Browne, the 2007Fuel EX mountain bike covered a lot ofground catching up with and becomingcomparable to the suspension designs ofits leading competitors. On the 2008 FuelEX, Trek needed to secure a leadershipposition in the marketplace. “With mountainbikes, it’s all about improving the suspensionand ride quality,” Browne explains. “Our2007 Fuel EX model matched the bikesproduced by our competitors, some of whichhad developed their own proprietarysuspension technology. For the 2008Fuel EX design, we challenged our designteam to come up with something trulyrevolutionary that would put us back on top.“We really pushed the envelope on the2008 Fuel EX because we needed todevelop a major advance that wouldleapfrog ahead in the same amount oftime we had spent on minor upgrades inthe past,” Browne continues. “Fortunately,we have some of the most talenteddesigners and engineers in the world withaccess to powerful conceptual design andvirtual prototyping technologies. UsingSolidWorks 3D CAD and COSMOSWorksanalysis software on AMD Opteronprocessor-based workstations, ourdesign team produced the R1i mountainbike suspension system. This innovativesuspension includes our patent-pendingActive Braking Pivot (ABP), Full Floatershock mount, and EVO Link rocker link,which combine to make the Fuel EX standapart from the competition.”

“Using SolidWorks 3D CAD and COSMOSWorks analysis software on AMD Opteron processor-based workstations,our design team produced the R1i mountain bike suspension system. This innovative suspension includes ourpatent-pending Active Braking Pivot, Full Floater shock mount, and EVO Link rocker link, which combine to make theFuel EX stand apart from the competition.” – Michael Browne, Trek Mountain Bike Brand ManagerComing up with an absurdly ideal solutionEngineering for the 2008 Fuel EX began within Trek’s AdvancedConcepts Group (ACG), which operates as on offline, researchand-developmentskunk works. Senior Suspension EngineerDylan Howes had identified three areas for redesign as partof the team’s efforts to improve suspension performance:improving suspension activation under braking, enhancingsuspension control throughout the entire suspension stroke,and increasing the torsional stiffness of the entire framesystem. The team studied the geometry of the bike, activationof the shock, and how the suspension tracked over roughsections during braking. “We know that braking affectssuspension performance — as you apply the brakes, traditionalbraking inhibits the suspension system’s ability to respond tobumps — and realized we would have a significant advantage ifwe could overcome that phenomenon.”Howes says he was working on early prototypes of the FuelEX design when James Colgrove, Manufacturing Engineer-Composites for Trek ACG, offered what at first seemed like anabsurd suggestion. “Jim stopped in my office one day and waslooking at my 2007 Fuel EX, which was leaning against the frontof my desk,” Howes recalls. “As he was looking at the bike,he asked ‘How come no one puts the pivot on the axle?’ Myinitial response was that positioning the brake pivot on the axlereally would not do anything because it seemed too obviousand I assumed the suspension member that the brake wasattached to would not change. But as we discussed brakecaliper placement, we had one of those ‘eureka’ moments. Istarted looking at centerline models in SolidWorks softwareand imagining how a floating brake mount integrated into thesuspension components would work. I discovered that it notonly could but would work very well. Using Jim’s initial ideaand SolidWorks design visualization tools, we were able to lookat brake performance in an entirely new way and arrive at anabsurdly ideal solution that provided a significant jump on thecompetition.”Before developing prototypes, ACG used SolidWorks CAD,COSMOSMotion kinematics analysis, and COSMOSWorksstructural analysis software on AMD-based systems for virtualprototyping to prove that the innovative Active Braking Pivot (ABP)concept would remove braking forces from the suspensionand eliminate brake compression. Using design analysis toolsto check design concepts and instantaneous leverage ratios,the design team validated enhancements to the suspension,including the use of a floating shock design, and improvedframe stiffness through the use of a one-piece rocker link.Industrial design refines conceptFollowing proof of concept, Senior Industrial Designer MichaelHammond used SolidWorks CAD software running on his64-bit Second-Generation AMD Opteron processor-basedworkstation and AMD Turion 64 mobile technology-basednotebook computers to add style to the Fuel EX and refine thedesign. “We brought a lot more resources and energy to the FuelEX effort because we knew we had the opportunity to createone of the best mountain bikes on the market,” Hammond notes.“The ACG Group developed the innovative ABP suspensiondesign in SolidWorks, so I was able to save time working withtheir models to tune the geometry.“Using an integrated package like SolidWorks saves a ton oftime,” Hammond adds. “We have to work as fast as we can,especially on a project like the Fuel EX because we had todeliver a completely new platform with three new technologies— the ABP, the Full Floater shock, and the EVO Link— in just sixmonths, which has traditionally been the time required for aminor upgrade.”In addition to stylizing the bike geometry in SolidWorks software,Hammond used integrated PhotoWorks software to createphotorealistic renderings and visuals for presentation andmarketing purposes. “My AMD-based systems give me the

power and speed I need to render photorealistic visuals and detail shots inPhotoWorks efficiently,” Hammond points out. “Working on a single platformto develop an innovative concept, refine the Fuel EX design, and create highqualityvisuals helped us to meet our ambitious development goals .”Effective communication enhances collaborationThe final step in the development of the 2008 Fuel EX was to tune theinnovative shock through several rounds of field-testing by one of theleading bicycle shock experts in the world. Jose Gonzalez runs Trek’s ridingand testing facility in California, where he heavily tested early prototypes ofthe Fuel EX and tuned the innovative suspension to improve performance.The rest of the design team back in Madison, Wisconsin, interacts withGonzalez frequently, but was able to minimize travel time and costs by usingSolidWorks eDrawings files to communicate design concepts.“Jose Gonzalez is a leading guru when it comes to bicycle shocks and is avaluable asset to the design team,” Hammond explains. “He was able toimprove suspension performance on the Fuel EX through hands-on testing,and we were able to review specific design elements and communicatedesign concepts using eDrawings files, which are compact SolidWorks modeland drawing files that are perfect for email.”In addition to using eDrawings files to communicate design information withits test facility, Trek uses eDrawings files to communicate effectively and workefficiently with suppliers and production facilities. “Having tools like SolidWorksand eDrawings, running on AMD-based systems, helped us to meet ourobjectives on the Fuel EX,” Howes says. “Our overall goal is to produce a bikethat you hop on and it just feels right. By improving the level of innovation andquality of the Fuel EX, we believe we have achieved that goal.”• Accelerated product time-to-market• Introduced industry-leading, Active Braking Pivot (ABP) suspension• Completed major breakthrough in the same time as a minor upgrade• Launched a top-performing suspension design

AMD Case Study: Trek BikesFor more information, visit www.amd.com/verticalsAbout SolidWorks CorporationSolidWorks Corporation, a Dassault Systèmes S.A. (Nasdaq: DASTY, Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA) company, developsand markets software for design, analysis, and product data management. It is the leading supplier of 3D CAD technology,giving teams intuitive, high-performing software that helps them design better products. For the latest news, information,or an online demonstration, visit the company’s Web site (www.solidworks.com) or call 1-800-693-9000 (outside of NorthAmerica, call +1-978-371-5000).About AMDAMD (NYSE:AMD) designs and produces innovative microprocessors, Flash memory devices, and low-powerprocessor solutions for the computer, communications, and consumer electronics industries.© 2008 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. All rights reserved. AMD, the AMD Arrow logo, AMD Opteron, AMD Turion, and combinations thereof aretrademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.45086- AOne AMD PlaceSunnyvale, CA 94088(800) 538-8450