Automotive design is the process of developing the appearance (and to some extent the
ergonomics) of
motor vehicles - including
automobile
A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods.
The year 1886 is regarded ...
s,
motorcycle
A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruisin ...
s,
truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...
s,
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
es,
coaches, and
van
A van is a type of road vehicle used for transporting goods or people. Depending on the type of van, it can be bigger or smaller than a pickup truck and SUV, and bigger than a common car. There is some varying in the scope of the word across th ...
s.
The functional
design
A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...
and development of a modern motor vehicle is typically done by a large
team from many different disciplines also included within
automotive engineering, however, design roles are not associated with requirements for
professional- or chartered-engineer qualifications. Automotive design in this context focuses primarily on developing the visual appearance or aesthetics of vehicles, while also becoming involved in the creation of
product concepts. Automotive design as a professional vocation
is practiced by designers who may have an art background and a degree in
industrial design or in transportation design. For the terminology used in the field, see the
glossary of automotive design
A glossary of terms relating to automotive design.
Some terms may be found at car classification.
0–9
; One-box form: A categorization based on overall form design using rough rectangle volumes. In the case of the one-box, also called a mo ...
.
Design elements
The task of the design team is usually split into three main aspects: exterior design, interior design, and color and
trim design.
Graphic design is also an aspect of automotive design; this is generally shared amongst the design team as the lead designer sees fit. The design focuses not only on the isolated outer shape of automobile parts, but concentrates on the combination of form and function, starting from the vehicle package.
The aesthetic value will need to correspond to ergonomic functionality and utility features as well. In particular, vehicular electronic components and parts will give more challenges to automotive designers who are required to update on the latest information and knowledge associated with emerging vehicular gadgetry, particularly
dashtop mobile devices, like GPS navigation,
satellite radio,
HD radio
HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...
, mobile TV, MP3 players, video playback, and smartphone interfaces. Though not all the new vehicular gadgets are to be designated as factory standard items, some of them may be integral to determining the future course of any specific vehicular models.
Exterior design
The design team(s) responsible for the exterior of the vehicle develops the proportions, shape, and surface details of the vehicle. Exterior design is first done by a series of manual sketches and digital drawings. Progressively, drawings that are more detailed are executed and approved by appropriate layers of management, followed by digital rendering to images. Consumer feedback is generally sought at this point to help iteratively refine vehicle concepts according to the targeted market and will continue throughout the rest of the design refinement process. After more progressive refinement,
industrial plasticine and or digital models are developed from and along with the drawings and images. The data from these models are then used to create quarter-scale and finally full-sized mock-ups of the final design. With three- and five-axis CNC milling machines, the
clay model is first designed in a computer program and then "carved" using the machine and large amounts of clay. Even in times of photorealistic 3D (three dimensional) software and virtual models on power walls, the clay model is still the most important tool for a final evaluation of the exterior design of a vehicle and, therefore, is used throughout the industry.
Interior design
The designer responsible for the vehicles' interior develops the proportions, shape, placement, and surfaces for the instrument panel, seats, door trim panels, headliner, pillar trims, etc. Here the emphasis is on ergonomics and the comfort of the passengers. The procedure here is the same as with exterior design (sketch, digital model, and clay model).
Color and trim design
The color and
trim (or color and materials) designer is responsible for the research, design, and development of all interior and exterior colors and materials used on a vehicle. These include
paint
Paint is any pigmented liquid, liquefiable, or solid mastic composition that, after application to a substrate in a thin layer, converts to a solid film. It is most commonly used to protect, color, or provide texture. Paint can be made in many ...
s,
plastic
Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...
s,
fabric designs,
leather
Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and ho ...
, grains,
carpet, headliner, wood trim, and so on.
Color
Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are assoc ...
, contrast,
texture, and pattern must be carefully combined to give the vehicle a unique interior environment experience. Designers work closely with the exterior and interior designers.
Designers draw inspiration from other design disciplines such as: industrial design,
fashion
Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fash ...
, home furnishing,
architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...
, and sometimes
product design. Specific research is done into global trends to design for projects two to three
model year
The model year (sometimes abbreviated "MY") is a method of describing the version of a product which has been produced over multiple years. The model year may or may not be the same as the calendar year in which the product was manufactured.
...
s in the future. Trend boards are created from this research in order to keep track of design influences as they relate to the automotive industry. The designer then uses this information to develop themes and concepts that are then further refined and tested on the vehicle models.
Graphic design
The design team also develops graphics for items, such as badges, decals, dials, switches, kick or tread strips, or liveries.
Computer-Aided Design and Class-A development
The sketches and rendering are transformed into 3D digital surface modeling and rendering for real-time evaluation with Math data in initial stages. During the development process succeeding phases will require the 3D model fully developed to meet the aesthetic requirements of a designer and well as all engineering and manufacturing requirements. The fully developed CAS digital model will be re-developed for manufacturing meeting the Class-A surface standards that involve both technical as well as aesthetics. This data will be further developed by a Product Engineering team. These modelers usually have a background in industrial design or sometimes tooling engineering in the case of some Class-A modelers.
Autodesk Alias and
ICEM Surf are the two most widely used software tools for Class-A development.
Development process
Design development cycle
Several manufacturers have slightly varied development cycles for designing an automobile, but in practice, these are the following:
* Design and
consumer research
Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data about issues relating to marketing products and services. The goal is to identify and assess how changing elements of the marketing mix i ...
* Concept development
sketching
*
CAS (Computer Aided Styling)
*
Clay modeling
* Interior buck model
* Vehicle ergonomics
*
Class-A Surface Development
* Color and trim
* Vehicle graphics
The design process occurs concurrently with other product engineers who will be engineering the styling data for meeting performance, manufacturing, and safety regulations. From mid-phase, back and forth interactions between the designers and product engineers culminate into a finished product be manufacturing ready.
Apart from this the engineering team parallelly works in the following areas. Product Engineering (Body In White Sheetmetal Design and Plastic engineering), NVH Development team,
Prototype development,
Powertrain engineering, Physical Vehicle validation, Tool and Die development, and
Manufacturing process design.
Development team
The design team for a specific model consists of a chief designer and an exterior as well as an interior designer. In some cases, all three roles are done by one designer. Several junior designers are involved in the development process as well who make specific contributions all overseen by the chief designer. Apart from this, the color and trim designer works closely with other designers. The clay model team and digital model team work closely with the styling team all located within the studio. Apart from this, there would be studio heads, studio managers, and prototype engineers who would work across all teams in the studio. The total team size for developing a full car usually ranges from 25 to 40 members and the development time lasts for more than 24 months until signed-off for tooling and production. Thereafter a smaller team would be working until vehicle launch.
History
United States
In the United States, automotive design reached a turning point in the 1920s when the American national automobile market began reaching saturation. To maintain unit sales,
General Motors head
Alfred P. Sloan Jr. suggested annual model-year design changes to convince car owners that they needed to buy a new replacement each year, an idea borrowed from the bicycle industry (though Sloan usually gets the credit or blame). Critics called his strategy
planned obsolescence
In economics and industrial design, planned obsolescence (also called built-in obsolescence or premature obsolescence) is a policy of planning or designing a product with an artificially limited useful life or a purposely frail design, so tha ...
. Sloan preferred the term "dynamic obsolescence". This strategy had far-reaching effects on the auto business, the field of product design, and eventually the American economy.
The smaller automakers could not maintain the pace and expense of yearly re-styling.
Henry Ford
Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American Technological and industrial history of the United States, industrialist, business magnate, founder of the Ford Motor Company, and chief developer of the assembly line technique of ...
did not like the model-year change because he clung to an engineer's notions of simplicity, economics of scale, and design integrity. GM surpassed Ford's sales in 1931 and became the dominant company in the industry thereafter. The frequent design changes also made it necessary to use a
body-on-frame rather than the lighter but less adaptable monocoque design used by most European automakers.
Some U.S. designers include
Gordon Buehrig, who was responsible for the
Auburn 851, as well as the
Cord 810 and 812 (hence also the
Hupmobile Skylark and the
Graham Hollywood).
In the 1930s,
Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automot ...
's innovations with aerodynamics helped launch the
Chrysler Airflow
The Chrysler Airflow is a full-size car produced by Chrysler from 1934 to 1937. The Airflow was the first full-size American production car to use streamlining as a basis for building a sleeker automobile, one less susceptible to air resistance. ...
in 1934, which was revolutionary and radical compared to the contemporary vehicles. However, inadequate consumer acceptance of the advanced appearance of the cars forced a re-design of succeeding models of the Airflow. This marketing experience made the entire industry take note of the high risks involved in incorporating major design advancements into their production cars.
A major influence on American auto styling and marketing was
Harley Earl
Harley Jarvis Earl (November 22, 1893 – April 10, 1969) was an American automotive designer and business executive. He was the initial designated head of design at General Motors, later becoming vice president, the first top executive ever ...
, who brought the
tailfin and other aeronautical design references to auto design starting with the rear fenders of the 1948 Cadillac. Another notable designer was
Chrysler
Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automot ...
group's designer
Virgil Exner, who developed the
Forward look design in the mid-1950s. Exner is also credited with using wind tunnel testing to justify incorporating tailfins, thus moving the company away from boxy-looking cars into more aerodynamic and futuristic designs.
Raymond Loewy was responsible for a number of
Studebaker
Studebaker was an American wagon and automobile manufacturer based in South Bend, Indiana, with a building at 1600 Broadway, Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1852 and incorporated in 1868 as the Studebaker Brothers ...
vehicles, such as the
Starlight
Starlight is the light emitted by stars. It typically refers to visible electromagnetic radiation from stars other than the Sun, observable from Earth at night, although a component of starlight is observable from Earth during daytime.
Sunl ...
(including the bullet-nose).
Starting in the 1960s,
Dick Teague, who spent most of his career with
American Motors Corporation
American Motors Corporation (AMC; commonly referred to as American Motors) was an American automobile manufacturing company formed by the merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and Hudson Motor Car Company on May 1, 1954. At the time, it was t ...
(AMC), originated the concept of using interchangeable body panels so as to create a wide array of different vehicles using the same stampings, starting with the
AMC Cavalier
The AMC Cavalier was a compact concept presented by American Motors (AMC) in 1965, noted for symmetrical elements of its design and its interchangeable body parts.
Origin
The AMC Cavalier was one of four prototypes that hinted at AMC's futu ...
. Teague was responsible for unique automotive designs such as the two-seat
AMC AMX muscle car, the subcompact
Gremlin, the
Pacer, and
Matador coupe, as well as the original and market segment-creating,
Jeep Cherokee (introduced in 1983, and built to 2001 in the U.S. and through 2005 in China).
Additionally during the 1960s,
Ford's first-generation
Ford Mustang
The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its sixth generation, it is the fifth-best selli ...
and
Thunderbird marked another era leading into new
market segments from
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...
. The Ford Mustang achieved record sales in its first year of production and established the
pony car segment.
Personal injury litigation has had an effect on the design and appearance of the car in the 20th century.
Europe
Until
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, most of the automakers were concerned with mechanical reliability rather than its external appearance. Later, luxury and
aesthetics
Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, Epistemology, knowledge, Ethics, values, Philosophy of ...
became a demand and also an effective marketing tool. Designs from each nation with its own strong cultural identity reflected in their exterior and interior designs.
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
slowed the progress, but after the early-1950s, Italian designers set the trend and remained the driving force until the early part of the 1980s.
France
In
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
notable designs came from
Bugatti
Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French manufacturer of high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then- German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the Italian-born industrial designer Ettore Bugatti. The ca ...
and
Avions Voisin. Of the mass-selling cars
Citroën, launched their vehicles with innovative designs and engineering and mostly aided by the styling of
Flaminio Bertoni as evident from
Citroën DS. After World War II, with the disappearance of the coach building industry, French automakers (except Citroën) followed British and other popular trends until they gained financial stability. During the 1980s, manufacturers like
Renault
Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufacture ...
cultivated their own strong design identities with designers like
Patrick Le Quément Patrick may refer to:
*Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name
*Patrick (surname), list of people with this name
People
*Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint
* Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick o ...
.
Peugeot, which was dependent on
Pininfarina since the early post-war period, later established its own brand identity from the 1980s onwards. Its other company, Citroën, still retains its distinctive French innovations for its designs.
Great Britain
Great Britain was Europe's leading manufacturer of automobiles until the late-1960s. During that era, there were more British-based automakers than in the rest of Europe combined. The British automobile industry catered to all segments ranging from compact, budget, sports, utility, and luxury-type cars. Car design in Britain was markedly different from other European designs largely because British designers were not influenced by other European art or design movements, as well as the British clay modelers, used a different sweep set.
British cars until World War II were sold in most of the
British colonies
A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony administered by The Crown within the British Empire. There was usually a Governor, appointed by the British monarch on the advice of the UK Government, with or without the assistance of a local Counc ...
. Innovations in vehicle packaging and chassis engineering combined with global familiarity with British designs meant vehicles were acceptable to public tastes at that time. British skilled resources like panel beaters, die machinists, and clay modelers were also available also partly due to their involvement with the motorsport industry.
Still, during the 1960s, British manufacturers sought professional help from the Italians, such as
Giovanni Michelotti,
Ercole Spada, and
Pininfarina. Notable British contributions to automobile designs were
Morris Mini by
Alec Issigonis, several
Jaguar Cars by
Sir William Lyons and Malcolm Sayer,
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated ...
DB Series, and several cars from
Triumph and
MG.
Ford Europe based in Great Britain, is notable for the
Ford Sierra line, a creation of
Uwe Bahnsen
Uwe Bahnsen (1930 in Hamburg – 30 July 2013 in south-west France) was an accomplished German painter, sculpter and car designer, widely noted for his 28-year career at Ford Motor Company, where he designed the second-generation Mercury Capri ...
,
Robert Lutz, and
Patrick le Quément Patrick may refer to:
*Patrick (given name), list of people and fictional characters with this name
*Patrick (surname), list of people with this name
People
*Saint Patrick (c. 385–c. 461), Christian saint
* Gilla Pátraic (died 1084), Patrick o ...
. Other British designers were
William Towns for
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Steered from 1947 by David Brown, it became associated ...
cars and
David Bache for
Land Rover
Land Rover is a British brand of predominantly four-wheel drive, off-road capable vehicles, owned by multinational car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), since 2008 a subsidiary of India's Tata Motors. JLR currently builds Land Rove ...
and
Range Rover vehicles.
Germany
Germany is often considered the birthplace of industrial design with
Bauhaus
The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 2 ...
School of Design. However, the
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...
regime closed down the design school.
Ferdinand Porsche
Ferdinand Porsche (3 September 1875 – 30 January 1951) was an Austrian-German automotive engineer and founder of the Porsche AG. He is best known for creating the first gasoline– electric hybrid vehicle ( Lohner–Porsche), the Vol ...
and his family played a significant role in German design.
Mercedes Benz passenger cars were also in the luxury segment and played more importance to aesthetics. After the 1980s, German design evolved into a distinctive Teutonic style often to complement their high engineered cars suited to Autobahns. The early German design clues of present-day owes some part to Italian designers like
Giovanni Michelotti,
Ercole Spada,
Bruno Sacco, and
Giorgetto Giugiaro. During the mid- and late-20th century one of the most influential coach builder/designer in Germany was
Karmann.
German designs started gaining popularity after the 1980s, notable after the formation of
Audi
Audi AG () is a German automotive manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany. As a subsidiary of its parent company, the Volkswagen Group, Audi produces vehicles in nine production facilities worldwide.
The o ...
.
Volkswagen
Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a global brand post ...
, which was dependent on
Marcello Gandini, Giorgetto Giugiaro, and Karmann, later formed the contemporary design language along with Audi. BMW entered the automobile design with sporty-looking everyday sedans using Giovanni Michelotti. These models were later enhanced by Ercole Spada into the 1980s, and Klaus Luthe until the mid-1990s. The American-born designer
Chris Bangle was hired by BMW in the late-1990s to re-define the brand. Bangle incorporated new single press technology for compound curves to add controversial styling elements to his designs.
The
Porsche family contribution was instrumental in the evolution of Porsche cars, while the Italian designer
Bruno Sacco helped create various Mercedes Models from the 1960s to the 1990s.
Italy
In Italy, companies like Fiat and Alfa Romeo played a major role in car design. Many coachbuilders were dependent on these two major manufacturers. Italian manufacturers had a large presence in motorsports leading to several sport car manufacturers like
Ferrari,
Lancia,
Lamborghini,
Maserati, etc. During the late-1950s, Italian automobile designs gained global popularity coinciding with the modern fashion and architecture at that time around the world. Various design and technical schools in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. Th ...
turned out designers on a large scale. By the late-1960s, almost all Italian coachbuilders transformed into design studios catering to automakers around the world. The trend continued in the 1990s when the
Japanese and
Korean manufacturers sourced designs from these styling studios. One example is
Pininfarina.
Italian designers whose designs services were sought globally are
Giovanni Michelotti,
Ercole Spada,
Bruno Sacco,
Marcello Gandini,
Giorgetto Giugiaro, and
Walter de Silva.
Scandinavia
Sweden had Volvo and Saab as domestic automakers, and the nation's northern location required that cars needed to withstand Nordic climate conditions. The
Scandinavian design elements are known for their minimalism and simplicity. One of the early original Scandinavian designs was the
Saab 92001 by Sixten Sason and Gunnar Ljungström.
Czechoslovakia
Prior to World War II and until the early-1990s,
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
had strong presence in the automotive industry with manufacturers like
Skoda,
Jawa,
Tatra,
CZ,
Praga, and
Zetor. Czech automobiles were generally known for their originality in mechanical simplicity and designs were remarkably
Bohemian as evident from Tatra cars and Jawa motorcycles. During the
Communist
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...
regime, the design started falling back and ultimately the domestic automakers ended up as subsidiaries of EU-based companies.
See also
*
Automotive aerodynamics
*
Industrial Design
*
Automotive Engineering
*
Alternative propulsion
*
Automobile layout
*
Computer-aided industrial design
*
Automotive design terminology
A glossary of terms relating to automotive design.
Some terms may be found at car classification.
0–9
; One-box form: A categorization based on overall form design using rough rectangle volumes. In the case of the one-box, also called a mo ...
*
Coachbuilder
A coachbuilder or body-maker is someone who manufactures bodies for passenger-carrying vehicles.Construction has always been a skilled trade requiring a relatively lightweight product with sufficient strength. The manufacture of necessarily ...
*
Car body style
*
Car classification
*
Car model
*
Car safety
*
Cab forward
*
Concept vehicle
*
Dashtop mobile
*
List of automotive designers
*
Ecodesign
*
Facelift (automobile)
*
Virtual tuning
*
H-point
*
Mass production
*
Packages
*
Platform
Platform may refer to:
Technology
* Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run
* Platform game, a genre of video games
* Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models
* Weapons platform, a system ...
*
Ponton styling
*
Pre-production car
*
Prototype
*
Solid freeform fabrication
3D printing or additive manufacturing is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer c ...
*
Three-box design
*
Wind tunnel
Wind tunnels are large tubes with air blowing through them which are used to replicate the interaction between air and an object flying through the air or moving along the ground. Researchers use wind tunnels to learn more about how an aircraft ...
References
Further reading
*
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Automotive Design