#Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer Market

[vynzresearchreport]

Global Test Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report by 2027

The global test automation systems for powertrain dynamometer market is expected to reach USD 1.07 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 5.78% from 2021 to 2027.

The growth of the market is being driven by the increasing demand for powertrain testing in the automotive industry. Test automation systems help to improve the efficiency and accuracy of powertrain testing, which is essential for ensuring the quality and performance of vehicles.

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The market is segmented by type, communication, vehicle type, propulsion, testing type, and region.

By type, the market is segmented into hardware and software. The hardware segment is expected to account for the largest share of the market during the forecast period. This is due to the increasing demand for high-performance test automation systems that can handle the complex testing requirements of modern vehicles.

By communication, the market is segmented into mobile, FlexRay, web, embedded software, CAN bus, and others. The mobile segment is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period. This is due to the increasing adoption of mobile devices for test automation.

By vehicle type, the market is segmented into passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, heavy-duty trucks, buses & coaches, motorcycles, power generation sets, motorsports, Powersports, agricultural vehicles, and others. The passenger vehicle segment is expected to account for the largest share of the market during the forecast period. This is due to the increasing demand for test automation systems for passenger vehicles in the global automotive market.

By propulsion, the market is segmented into internal combustion engines (ICE) and electric. The ICE segment is expected to account for the largest share of the market during the forecast period. This is due to the increasing demand for ICE vehicles in the global automotive market.

By testing type, the market is segmented into durability tests, performance tests, vehicle simulations, and others. The durability test segment is expected to account for the largest share of the market during the forecast period. This is due to the increasing demand for durability testing of vehicles in the global automotive market.

By region, the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and South America. North America is expected to account for the largest share of the market during the forecast period. This is due to the presence of a large number of automotive manufacturers and suppliers in the region.

The key players operating in the global test automation systems for the powertrain dynamometer market include:

SAKOR Technologies

Rototest

Horiba Automotive

Power Test, Inc.

FEV Europe GmbH

Sierra Instruments, Inc

A&D Technology

Dyne Systems

Integral Powertrain Ltd

AIP GmbH & Co. KG

These companies are focusing on developing innovative test automation solutions to meet the growing demand for powertrain testing in the automotive industry.

The global test automation systems for powertrain dynamometer market is a highly competitive market. The key players are competing on the basis of product offerings, features, and pricing. The market is expected to witness new product launches and partnerships in the coming years.

About Us:

VynZ Research is a global market research firm offering research, analytics, and consulting services on business strategies. We have a recognized trajectory record and our research database is used by many renowned companies and institutions in the world to strategize and revolutionize business opportunities.

Source: VynZ Research

[reportstopresearchindustry]

Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer Market Growth

The global test automation systems for the powertrain dynamometer market are anticipated to grow from USD 639.7 million in 2020 to USD 1.07 billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 5.78% during the forecast period 2021-2027. Powertrain dynamometer test automation systems are integrated interfaces for performing, manipulating, recording, and analyzing various tests in test rigs. These technologies help technicians, engineers, and scientists run various experiments with more precision and in less time and offer safety, durability, long-life, and high performance.

Download Free Sample Copy Of Research Report: https://www.vynzresearch.com/automotive-transportation/automation-systems-for-powertrain-dynamometer-market/request-sample

Source: VynZ Research

[perfectresearch]

Test Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer Market Size, Top Players and Forecast by 2027

VynZ Research has predicted that the Global Test Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer Market Size will reach USD 1.07 billion by 2027, with a projected CAGR of 5.78% during the forecast period from 2021-2027.

Get a sample copy: https://www.vynzresearch.com/automotive-transportation/automation-systems-for-powertrain-dynamometer-market/request-sample

The research report offers an in-depth analysis of the market, including segmentation, dynamics, competition, and regional growth, with the latest trends and strategies for vendors in the Global Test Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer Market.

The report also provides answers to key questions such as which geographical areas will be most lucrative, what factors will shift the demand for Test Automation Systems for Powertrain Dynamometer market Growth, and how evolving trends will impact the market.

Source: VynZ Research

[trendytechreviews]

Automotive Diagnostic Tools Market to Witness Comprehensive Growth by 2025

Automotive diagnostic tools are a combination of electronic hardware and software systems, which are used to detect and rectify the faults in a vehicle. Automotive diagnostic tools have a high degree of efficiency and sophistication. They are utilized to identify flaws in a vehicle’s powertrain, body, and chassis. Automotive diagnostic tools are primarily employed in workshops and service stations. The application of the automotive diagnostic tools in the automotive industry involves using diagnostic equipment (hardware), diagnostic software, repair, and diagnostic data.

The automotive diagnostic tools market is expected to be driven by a rise in the need to rapidly identify and rectify flaws in a vehicle in order to ensure the safety of the driver. A change in consumer preference from manual to sophisticated automated diagnostics systems, which save time and effort and offer greater efficiency through the use of software systems, is likely to provide lucrative opportunities for the automotive diagnostic tools market in the near future.

An increase in demand for tools to identify faults in parts of vehicle is expected to boost the automotive diagnostic tools market in the next few years. The electrification of vehicles and the rise in number of service stations are also anticipated to provide lucrative opportunities in the automotive diagnostic tools market during the forecast period.

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However, the functioning of automotive diagnostic tools is complex and involves a number of sophisticated hardware devices and software systems. This raises the cost of tools. These minor drawbacks of the automotive diagnostic tools are expected to hamper the automotive diagnostic tools market to some extent during the forecast period.

Based on type, the automotive diagnostic tools market can be segmented into diagnostic equipment hardware, diagnostic software, repair, and diagnostic data. The diagnostic software segment is estimated to expand significantly during the forecast period. This can be primarily attributed to the rise in requirement of different types of diagnostic software for different models of vehicles that are launched every year.

In terms of equipment type, the automotive diagnostic tools market can be classified into wheel alignment tester, handheld tread depth, digital battery tester, automotive paint inspection equipment, and vehicle emission test system. The wheel alignment tester helps maintain the tire alignment in order to avoid undue tread wear due to tire misalignment. The handheld tread depth is an equipment that rapidly scans the tire tread depth of cars simply by rolling over laser sensors that are embedded in drive-over floor plates. Digital battery sensor enables the measurement of superior voltage, current, and temperature. It minimizes power consumption without compromising on accuracy during data processing. Vehicle emission test systems (VETS) are software packages that are designed to run light-duty emission cycles on chassis dynamometer systems.

In terms of geographical regions, the market can be segregated into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. The automotive diagnostic tools market in Asia Pacific is expected to expand significantly during the forecast period. This can be primarily attributed to an increase in vehicle production in the region, strong presence of key vehicle manufacturers in countries in Asia Pacific such as China, Japan, and South Korea, and the high adoption rate for automated technologies for diagnosis and rectification of flaws in vehicle operations, in the region.

Key players operating in the automotive diagnostic tools market include Delphi Technologies, Denso Corporation, Continental AG, Robert Bosch GmbH, Hickok Inc., Dearborn Group (DG Technologies), Bosch Automotive Service Solutions Inc., General Technologies Corp., and ETAS GmbH.

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[eddiejpoplar]

The Lamborghini Urus Pushes the Envelope of Design and Manufacturing

Lamborghini has long held a reputation for creating abstract and flamboyant supercars capable of stunning passers-by wherever they go. It was therefore a bit of a shock when the supercar manufacturer announced that it was going to introduce a super SUV to its line-up. What were executives thinking? What would Ferruccio think?

The Lamborghini Urus, first seen in concept form at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show, is not the first time that Lamborghini has tried to enter into the lucrative SUV market. Cast your mind back to the late 80s and you will possibly remember the LM002, Lamborghini’s first ever production SUV. Based upon a failed attempt to build a military vehicle called the Cheetah for the US government, it used the beastly V-12 engine from the iconic Countach and was in production through 1993.

Although the Urus concept initially divided opinion, Lamborghini decided to press ahead with a major shakeup of its lineup—and an even bigger change to its manufacturing plant in Sant’Agata Bolognese. We went along to take a peek at the brand new factory—and of course, its new SSUV.

The Design

The world premiere of the Urus was a big event for Lamborghini—and for Italy as a whole. As I sat among the Italian Prime Minister and other dignitaries in the new Urus factory, the lights dimmed and an impressive lightshow commenced. Not any light show, but an amalgamation of people dancing with tube lights and robot arms spinning TV screens. It was all a bit avant garde, but hey, it was a Lamborghini launch. As the lightshow drew to an end, a strong odour of burning oil and raw gasoline filled the auditorium. Then a striking silhouette emerged from a screen of smoke—it was an LM002.

From a side profile, it is incredibly bulky. Almost as if it were designed with only right-angles in mind. It’s masculine and purposeful, designed as such because of its origins as a military vehicle.

It was no shock then, that when the Urus emerged from the fog in close succession, that I could make out some tell-tale LM002 features—and even some Aventador characteristics. This is intentional of course. The head of design for the Urus told me with great passion that the car is designed with the LM002 in mind, and the trademark Lamborghini ‘three lines’ that are at the heart of each Lamborghini produced. The hood has two creases down the length of it in typical raging bull fashion, and the nose contains the symbolic pointed tip above the shield.

Compare the side profiles of the LM002 and the Urus and you immediately see the wheel arches share the same inspiration. The use of plastics for the arch mouldings is unconventional for a high price SSUV, but it seems to work.

Grasp the door handle of the Urus and nothing special happens. The iconic scissor doors are reserved for V-12 Lambos only. However, when inside you will see shapes similarly found on the flagship Aventador. The air vents use the same outline of the Aventador’s exhaust tip, and the repeated epsilon pattern synonymous with all new Lamborghini is used throughout.

One stand-out interior feature is the new ‘Tamburo’ system. This is the drive select system that gives you the option to scale through various terrain response maps. The standard Lamborghini Strada, Sport, and Corsa modes are joined by Neve (Snow) and Terra (off-road). The way you select these is by using switches which are inspired by a commercial airliner’s engine controls. The Tamburo switches, and the fighter pilot inspired engine start button certainly give you the feel of being in a cockpit.

The Factory

The new Urus factory is a remarkably fascinating place. The new building uses the same production line strategies as the old Huracán and Aventador facilities, but with today’s most advanced manufacturing technologies. Throughout the evening, Lamborghini was keen to get across that its new production facility is designed to make the most of a harmonious marriage of robot and man, working in unison. Is this just marketing spiel, or does it actually work? I was keen to find out.

The 4.5-acre compound has doubled Lamborghini’s size and is currently set up to output 23 Urus per day, but sources in the factory told me that they could ramp this up quite easily if needed. There are two shifts of workers, each equipped with a personal RFID wrist band to log into each system, who work in pairs at 23 separate stations.

An Urus begins life as a freshly painted chassis brought in to the factory from an external supplier. This bare frame chassis rolls on to the new line atop a fully autonomous mobile platform called an AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle). Each of the 32 AGVs can move in all six axes and are aware of their location in the factory by using LIDAR sensors in each four corners, visually mapping its surroundings using robot eyes. The AGVs carry chassis to each assembly station where two Lamborghini workers append parts to the car in strict 35-minute windows.

Not only do Lamborghini’s autonomous robots transport the car around to each assembly station, they actually work alongside them. At the station responsible for lowering the body on to a pre-assembled rolling powertrain, another autonomous robot circles the freshly arrived AGV, touching the chassis in a number of areas. This is enough information for the robot to know where it is, and where the chassis is, to millimeter accuracy. It then scoots around the chassis and tightens each chassis bolt to precise torque levels, all the while mapping the location of the squishy Lamborghini workers to avoid any collisions.

Skip forward four stations and you find TireBot, whichwouldn’t look out of place on a NASA space mission. This robot carries wheels from a storage rack to each corner of the car. It then lifts and aligns the wheel with the bolt holes, putting it in position for the human worker to finish by tightening with an impact wrench. When we consider that the Urus can be specified to have huge 23” rims, this will save the worker a lot of backache over a working day.

Once the car arrives at the final assembly station, it can roll off its AGV robot companion and the 4.0-liter V-8 engine can be fired into life. The now-complete Urus is then transferred to the final line in the new building, where every imaginable quality test is undertaken.

The first test station is responsible for wheel alignment and calibration of the wealth of on-board driver assistance systems, from radar to camera components. The Urus is then wheeled on to a chassis dynamometer, where the car is driven through a test cycle that takes the car up to precisely 87 mph, performing braking tests at regular intervals.

All of these processes are vastly dissimilar to the existing Huracán and Aventador production lines. Although they use the same philosophy of a moving production line and strict windows to install parts, the old factory has no autonomous or even mobile robots. The few robots that are in use are bolted to the floor and have very specific degrees of freedom. The autonomous nature of the Urus line lends itself nicely to a more flexible working environment and easier production.

Once the Urus has completed all of the indoor quality tests, it is then sent out on a road test for final verification.

The Verdict

Although looks are completely subjective, I think that it’s safe to say that the Urus certainly stands out from the likes of the Bentley Bentayga and Range Rover. The jagged lines and typical Lamborghini flare make for an SUV with the presence of a supercar, the performance to match, and the everyday usability of a conventional SUV. You can’t argue with the facts, either—the Urus is the lowest SUV on the market, offers the lowest seating position, and is the fastest. For those facts alone it gets my seal of approval.

Lamborghini strongly pushed their new manufacturing processes, talking of the harmonization of human and robot interaction, and although it sounds like marketing spiel on paper, having meandered through the factory observing the manufacturing line, it actually works. The unity of man and machine is tangible, and the advanced robotics such as TireBot and AGVs are amazing to observe in action. Will any of this autonomous tech end up in a production Lamborghini? Probably not, that’s not what they are all about.

Let’s hope that the additional cash flow realized from the inevitable full order book for Urus’ will feed into the development of the next hypercar from one of our favourite car manufacturers.

The post The Lamborghini Urus Pushes the Envelope of Design and Manufacturing appeared first on Automobile Magazine.

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[jesusvasser]

The Lamborghini Urus Pushes the Envelope of Design and Manufacturing

Lamborghini has long held a reputation for creating abstract and flamboyant supercars capable of stunning passers-by wherever they go. It was therefore a bit of a shock when the supercar manufacturer announced that it was going to introduce a super SUV to its line-up. What were executives thinking? What would Ferruccio think?

The Lamborghini Urus, first seen in concept form at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show, is not the first time that Lamborghini has tried to enter into the lucrative SUV market. Cast your mind back to the late 80s and you will possibly remember the LM002, Lamborghini’s first ever production SUV. Based upon a failed attempt to build a military vehicle called the Cheetah for the US government, it used the beastly V-12 engine from the iconic Countach and was in production through 1993.

Although the Urus concept initially divided opinion, Lamborghini decided to press ahead with a major shakeup of its lineup—and an even bigger change to its manufacturing plant in Sant’Agata Bolognese. We went along to take a peek at the brand new factory—and of course, its new SSUV.

The Design

The world premiere of the Urus was a big event for Lamborghini—and for Italy as a whole. As I sat among the Italian Prime Minister and other dignitaries in the new Urus factory, the lights dimmed and an impressive lightshow commenced. Not any light show, but an amalgamation of people dancing with tube lights and robot arms spinning TV screens. It was all a bit avant garde, but hey, it was a Lamborghini launch. As the lightshow drew to an end, a strong odour of burning oil and raw gasoline filled the auditorium. Then a striking silhouette emerged from a screen of smoke—it was an LM002.

From a side profile, it is incredibly bulky. Almost as if it were designed with only right-angles in mind. It’s masculine and purposeful, designed as such because of its origins as a military vehicle.

It was no shock then, that when the Urus emerged from the fog in close succession, that I could make out some tell-tale LM002 features—and even some Aventador characteristics. This is intentional of course. The head of design for the Urus told me with great passion that the car is designed with the LM002 in mind, and the trademark Lamborghini ‘three lines’ that are at the heart of each Lamborghini produced. The hood has two creases down the length of it in typical raging bull fashion, and the nose contains the symbolic pointed tip above the shield.

Compare the side profiles of the LM002 and the Urus and you immediately see the wheel arches share the same inspiration. The use of plastics for the arch mouldings is unconventional for a high price SSUV, but it seems to work.

Grasp the door handle of the Urus and nothing special happens. The iconic scissor doors are reserved for V-12 Lambos only. However, when inside you will see shapes similarly found on the flagship Aventador. The air vents use the same outline of the Aventador’s exhaust tip, and the repeated epsilon pattern synonymous with all new Lamborghini is used throughout.

One stand-out interior feature is the new ‘Tamburo’ system. This is the drive select system that gives you the option to scale through various terrain response maps. The standard Lamborghini Strada, Sport, and Corsa modes are joined by Neve (Snow) and Terra (off-road). The way you select these is by using switches which are inspired by a commercial airliner’s engine controls. The Tamburo switches, and the fighter pilot inspired engine start button certainly give you the feel of being in a cockpit.

The Factory

The new Urus factory is a remarkably fascinating place. The new building uses the same production line strategies as the old Huracán and Aventador facilities, but with today’s most advanced manufacturing technologies. Throughout the evening, Lamborghini was keen to get across that its new production facility is designed to make the most of a harmonious marriage of robot and man, working in unison. Is this just marketing spiel, or does it actually work? I was keen to find out.

The 4.5-acre compound has doubled Lamborghini’s size and is currently set up to output 23 Urus per day, but sources in the factory told me that they could ramp this up quite easily if needed. There are two shifts of workers, each equipped with a personal RFID wrist band to log into each system, who work in pairs at 23 separate stations.

An Urus begins life as a freshly painted chassis brought in to the factory from an external supplier. This bare frame chassis rolls on to the new line atop a fully autonomous mobile platform called an AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle). Each of the 32 AGVs can move in all six axes and are aware of their location in the factory by using LIDAR sensors in each four corners, visually mapping its surroundings using robot eyes. The AGVs carry chassis to each assembly station where two Lamborghini workers append parts to the car in strict 35-minute windows.

Not only do Lamborghini’s autonomous robots transport the car around to each assembly station, they actually work alongside them. At the station responsible for lowering the body on to a pre-assembled rolling powertrain, another autonomous robot circles the freshly arrived AGV, touching the chassis in a number of areas. This is enough information for the robot to know where it is, and where the chassis is, to millimeter accuracy. It then scoots around the chassis and tightens each chassis bolt to precise torque levels, all the while mapping the location of the squishy Lamborghini workers to avoid any collisions.

Skip forward four stations and you find TireBot, whichwouldn’t look out of place on a NASA space mission. This robot carries wheels from a storage rack to each corner of the car. It then lifts and aligns the wheel with the bolt holes, putting it in position for the human worker to finish by tightening with an impact wrench. When we consider that the Urus can be specified to have huge 23” rims, this will save the worker a lot of backache over a working day.

Once the car arrives at the final assembly station, it can roll off its AGV robot companion and the 4.0-liter V-8 engine can be fired into life. The now-complete Urus is then transferred to the final line in the new building, where every imaginable quality test is undertaken.

The first test station is responsible for wheel alignment and calibration of the wealth of on-board driver assistance systems, from radar to camera components. The Urus is then wheeled on to a chassis dynamometer, where the car is driven through a test cycle that takes the car up to precisely 87 mph, performing braking tests at regular intervals.

All of these processes are vastly dissimilar to the existing Huracán and Aventador production lines. Although they use the same philosophy of a moving production line and strict windows to install parts, the old factory has no autonomous or even mobile robots. The few robots that are in use are bolted to the floor and have very specific degrees of freedom. The autonomous nature of the Urus line lends itself nicely to a more flexible working environment and easier production.

Once the Urus has completed all of the indoor quality tests, it is then sent out on a road test for final verification.

The Verdict

Although looks are completely subjective, I think that it’s safe to say that the Urus certainly stands out from the likes of the Bentley Bentayga and Range Rover. The jagged lines and typical Lamborghini flare make for an SUV with the presence of a supercar, the performance to match, and the everyday usability of a conventional SUV. You can’t argue with the facts, either—the Urus is the lowest SUV on the market, offers the lowest seating position, and is the fastest. For those facts alone it gets my seal of approval.

Lamborghini strongly pushed their new manufacturing processes, talking of the harmonization of human and robot interaction, and although it sounds like marketing spiel on paper, having meandered through the factory observing the manufacturing line, it actually works. The unity of man and machine is tangible, and the advanced robotics such as TireBot and AGVs are amazing to observe in action. Will any of this autonomous tech end up in a production Lamborghini? Probably not, that’s not what they are all about.

Let’s hope that the additional cash flow realized from the inevitable full order book for Urus’ will feed into the development of the next hypercar from one of our favourite car manufacturers.

The post The Lamborghini Urus Pushes the Envelope of Design and Manufacturing appeared first on Automobile Magazine.

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[jonathanbelloblog]

The Lamborghini Urus Pushes the Envelope of Design and Manufacturing

Lamborghini has long held a reputation for creating abstract and flamboyant supercars capable of stunning passers-by wherever they go. It was therefore a bit of a shock when the supercar manufacturer announced that it was going to introduce a super SUV to its line-up. What were executives thinking? What would Ferruccio think?

The Lamborghini Urus, first seen in concept form at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show, is not the first time that Lamborghini has tried to enter into the lucrative SUV market. Cast your mind back to the late 80s and you will possibly remember the LM002, Lamborghini’s first ever production SUV. Based upon a failed attempt to build a military vehicle called the Cheetah for the US government, it used the beastly V-12 engine from the iconic Countach and was in production through 1993.

Although the Urus concept initially divided opinion, Lamborghini decided to press ahead with a major shakeup of its lineup—and an even bigger change to its manufacturing plant in Sant’Agata Bolognese. We went along to take a peek at the brand new factory—and of course, its new SSUV.

The Design

The world premiere of the Urus was a big event for Lamborghini—and for Italy as a whole. As I sat among the Italian Prime Minister and other dignitaries in the new Urus factory, the lights dimmed and an impressive lightshow commenced. Not any light show, but an amalgamation of people dancing with tube lights and robot arms spinning TV screens. It was all a bit avant garde, but hey, it was a Lamborghini launch. As the lightshow drew to an end, a strong odour of burning oil and raw gasoline filled the auditorium. Then a striking silhouette emerged from a screen of smoke—it was an LM002.

From a side profile, it is incredibly bulky. Almost as if it were designed with only right-angles in mind. It’s masculine and purposeful, designed as such because of its origins as a military vehicle.

It was no shock then, that when the Urus emerged from the fog in close succession, that I could make out some tell-tale LM002 features—and even some Aventador characteristics. This is intentional of course. The head of design for the Urus told me with great passion that the car is designed with the LM002 in mind, and the trademark Lamborghini ‘three lines’ that are at the heart of each Lamborghini produced. The hood has two creases down the length of it in typical raging bull fashion, and the nose contains the symbolic pointed tip above the shield.

Compare the side profiles of the LM002 and the Urus and you immediately see the wheel arches share the same inspiration. The use of plastics for the arch mouldings is unconventional for a high price SSUV, but it seems to work.

Grasp the door handle of the Urus and nothing special happens. The iconic scissor doors are reserved for V-12 Lambos only. However, when inside you will see shapes similarly found on the flagship Aventador. The air vents use the same outline of the Aventador’s exhaust tip, and the repeated epsilon pattern synonymous with all new Lamborghini is used throughout.

One stand-out interior feature is the new ‘Tamburo’ system. This is the drive select system that gives you the option to scale through various terrain response maps. The standard Lamborghini Strada, Sport, and Corsa modes are joined by Neve (Snow) and Terra (off-road). The way you select these is by using switches which are inspired by a commercial airliner’s engine controls. The Tamburo switches, and the fighter pilot inspired engine start button certainly give you the feel of being in a cockpit.

The Factory

The new Urus factory is a remarkably fascinating place. The new building uses the same production line strategies as the old Huracán and Aventador facilities, but with today’s most advanced manufacturing technologies. Throughout the evening, Lamborghini was keen to get across that its new production facility is designed to make the most of a harmonious marriage of robot and man, working in unison. Is this just marketing spiel, or does it actually work? I was keen to find out.

The 4.5-acre compound has doubled Lamborghini’s size and is currently set up to output 23 Urus per day, but sources in the factory told me that they could ramp this up quite easily if needed. There are two shifts of workers, each equipped with a personal RFID wrist band to log into each system, who work in pairs at 23 separate stations.

An Urus begins life as a freshly painted chassis brought in to the factory from an external supplier. This bare frame chassis rolls on to the new line atop a fully autonomous mobile platform called an AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle). Each of the 32 AGVs can move in all six axes and are aware of their location in the factory by using LIDAR sensors in each four corners, visually mapping its surroundings using robot eyes. The AGVs carry chassis to each assembly station where two Lamborghini workers append parts to the car in strict 35-minute windows.

Not only do Lamborghini’s autonomous robots transport the car around to each assembly station, they actually work alongside them. At the station responsible for lowering the body on to a pre-assembled rolling powertrain, another autonomous robot circles the freshly arrived AGV, touching the chassis in a number of areas. This is enough information for the robot to know where it is, and where the chassis is, to millimeter accuracy. It then scoots around the chassis and tightens each chassis bolt to precise torque levels, all the while mapping the location of the squishy Lamborghini workers to avoid any collisions.

Skip forward four stations and you find TireBot, whichwouldn’t look out of place on a NASA space mission. This robot carries wheels from a storage rack to each corner of the car. It then lifts and aligns the wheel with the bolt holes, putting it in position for the human worker to finish by tightening with an impact wrench. When we consider that the Urus can be specified to have huge 23” rims, this will save the worker a lot of backache over a working day.

Once the car arrives at the final assembly station, it can roll off its AGV robot companion and the 4.0-liter V-8 engine can be fired into life. The now-complete Urus is then transferred to the final line in the new building, where every imaginable quality test is undertaken.

The first test station is responsible for wheel alignment and calibration of the wealth of on-board driver assistance systems, from radar to camera components. The Urus is then wheeled on to a chassis dynamometer, where the car is driven through a test cycle that takes the car up to precisely 87 mph, performing braking tests at regular intervals.

All of these processes are vastly dissimilar to the existing Huracán and Aventador production lines. Although they use the same philosophy of a moving production line and strict windows to install parts, the old factory has no autonomous or even mobile robots. The few robots that are in use are bolted to the floor and have very specific degrees of freedom. The autonomous nature of the Urus line lends itself nicely to a more flexible working environment and easier production.

Once the Urus has completed all of the indoor quality tests, it is then sent out on a road test for final verification.

The Verdict

Although looks are completely subjective, I think that it’s safe to say that the Urus certainly stands out from the likes of the Bentley Bentayga and Range Rover. The jagged lines and typical Lamborghini flare make for an SUV with the presence of a supercar, the performance to match, and the everyday usability of a conventional SUV. You can’t argue with the facts, either—the Urus is the lowest SUV on the market, offers the lowest seating position, and is the fastest. For those facts alone it gets my seal of approval.

Lamborghini strongly pushed their new manufacturing processes, talking of the harmonization of human and robot interaction, and although it sounds like marketing spiel on paper, having meandered through the factory observing the manufacturing line, it actually works. The unity of man and machine is tangible, and the advanced robotics such as TireBot and AGVs are amazing to observe in action. Will any of this autonomous tech end up in a production Lamborghini? Probably not, that’s not what they are all about.

Let’s hope that the additional cash flow realized from the inevitable full order book for Urus’ will feed into the development of the next hypercar from one of our favourite car manufacturers.

The post The Lamborghini Urus Pushes the Envelope of Design and Manufacturing appeared first on Automobile Magazine.

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