In 2018, Meneta finished the development of their shim simulation technology, also known as the Meneta Black Box™. It took more than 2 years to develop this new shim simulation technology.

 

The mastermind behind this technology is Halewijn Stikvoort. Halewijn has a degree in Mechanical Engineering and is a Research Engineer at Meneta Advanced Shim Technology. His idea was to get to the core of the product, characterize and model it, to be able to analyze it in a virtual environment. This simulation tool has made it possible to predict how a shim would react in certain environments – without having to test it manually first.

“A shim is built of steel, adhesive and rubber of which there are more than 20,000 different combinations. Finding the right combination – the most silent one – can be very time-consuming,” Halewijn explains. “The Meneta Black Box™ eases this trial and error approach significantly in the search for the right material combination for the specific customer’s needs.”

Designing the Meneta Black Box™ was a challenging task as it has been tried before without optimal results. “It required a complete characterization of all our material. It was necessary to know the material down to the core,” Halewijn elaborates.

“Simulation is also a way to support our customers. They get a finished implementable shim model to pre-screen our portfolio. It is a service that we provide free of charge,” Halewijn continues. ”We get a closer collaboration with our customers and are able to help them at an earlier stage than before.”

Halewijn stresses that the traditional dynamometers are still a crucial part of the process, but the simulation model works remarkably well, and therefore it makes the choosing of right test candidates for the dynos faster and easier. The goal is to reduce the dyno usage per project by 30-40 %, depending on the project and noise issue.

“The feedback that we have gotten from customers, which include some of the big OEMs, is that it is a unique simulation tool, and they are very satisfied with the results,” Halewijn concludes.

Halewijn was recently interviewed by Abaqus. If you want to learn more about what it means to be an engineer in the automotive industry, watch it here.

 

The Meneta Black Box™ shim model:

  • Is free of charge
  • Has a low calculation impact
  • Reduces development time and costs
  • Is directly implementable in your Abaqus brake model
  • Allows shim material and geometry optimization – free design of the shim shape
  • Reduces time to market
  • Is available for direct customers, but also OEMs and brake system manufacturers
  • Is a unique, full shim simulation model made by the supplier who knows the material best