XSENSOR - article

Lear's Manager of Occupant Biomechanics Terry O'Bannon has worked with every major pressure mapping system and is a leading authority on the use of pressure imaging as it applies to automotive seat research.

O'Bannon describes the need for a pressure imaging system like XSENSOR's in determining seat durability. "If we're going to predict and test how long the seat will last in the field," he says, "we need to have a real predictor of what is happening to the seat in engineering terms. We literally want to see what the seat is experiencing. That's where pressure mapping comes in to play."

With the data obtained through pressure mapping, Lear's research team is then able to program its robotic tests to mimic the movement of a person associated with the previously measured pressure range. The robots are then able to duplicate the movement thousands of times and Lear is able to objectively evaluate how the seat will stand up over time.

Prior to using pressure mapping, Lear's research team was dependent on primarily qualitative results of stress during ingress/egress and was left to determine design flaws by a series of guess-and-tests, which proved expensive and time-consuming. "Pressure mapping reduces the number of iterations to get something right, which saves both time and money," O'Bannon says.

Pressure mapping allows O'Bannon and his team to view accurate, high resolution results of pressure tests in real time. The X3 Industrial System, which Lear currently uses, includes a variety of sensor options designed to withstand industrial testing conditions and provide repeatable, accurate pressure distribution information. As a result of the sensors durability, Lear is able to execute rigorous tests without delaying to adjust the sensors or recalibrate. "If your test is not severe enough," O'Bannon says, "you end up with a lot of warranty issues-which can cost tens of millions of dollars each year for automakers. If your test is the most robust, then you are able to save millions in warranty returns."

XSENSOR's pressure imaging systems also facilitate Lear's research into passenger comfort. In the automobile industry, the comfort of a seat can make or break a sale. As more people drive more frequently and to greater distances than ever before, ensuring a seat remains comfortable for passengers for an extended period of time is a high priority for Lear. That's why the company includes pressure mapping as a key step in its proprietary ComforTec^TM engineering process.

"What we try to do with ComforTec^TM is bridge the gap between engineering data, acquired using pressure imaging, and subjective data, that being comfort levels," O'Bannon says. He explains that his team hosts clinics with large samples of consumers, during which he encourages participants to express verbally what is comfortable and what is uncomfortable. "It's our job to figure out the cause of their complaints, and we do that in part using pressure mapping."

Lear combines qualitative data obtained through consumer feedback with quantitative pressure distribution data to develop prototypes. "XSENSOR's pressure mapping system gives us better data-more trustworthy data-in fewer iterations. We know we can rely on the information we are getting and this is critical. Quantitative data adds little to the process, in fact can take away from the process, if it is not accurate. We trust the results we get with the XSENSOR system."

RESULTS
Through the use of pressure imaging in its seat comfort and durability testing, Lear is able to attain the following results:

Apply additional quantitative measurements to evaluate seat durability and passenger comfort
Reduce product flaws and warranty returns for customers, thus saving Lear and automakers millions of dollars each year
More accurately predict lifespan of automobile seats
Improve results generated from robotic testing by ensuring proper testing conditions

To learn more, please contact Karl Schilling or visit www.xsensor.com.

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