My Speciality "Automobile Transport Engineer"
Modern Automobile engineering is a branch of vehicle engineering, incorporating elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software and safety engineering as applied to the design, manufacture and operation of motorcycles, automobiles, buses and trucks and their respective engineering subsystems.
Automobile engineers are involved in almost every aspect of designing cars and trucks, from the initial concepts right through to manufacturing them.
Broadly speaking, Automobile engineers are separated into three main streams: product engineering, development engineering and manufacturing engineering.
Product engineer (also called design engineer), that would design components/systems (i.e. brake engineer and battery engineer). This engineer designs and tests a part, seeing that it meets all its requirements, performs as required, material meets desired durability.
Development engineer, that engineers the attributes of the automobile. This engineer may provide to the design engineer what spring rate he/she requires to provide the "ride" characteristics required for the automobile to perform as desired, etc.
Manufacturing engineer, determines how to make it.
Automobile engineering employs different areas.
Safety Engineering which is the assessment of various crash scenarios and their impact on the vehicle occupants. These are tested against governmental regulations including: seat belt and air bag functionality, front and side crash worthiness, resistance to rollover.
Fuel Economy/Emissions is the measured fuel efficiency of the vehicle in miles per gallon or litres per 100 kilometres.
Vehicle Dynamics which is the vehicle's response of the following attributes: ride, handling, steering, braking, and traction. Design of the chassis systems of suspension, steering, braking, structure (frame), wheels and tires, and traction control are highly leveraged by the Vehicle Dynamics engineer to deliver the Vehicle Dynamics qualities desired.
Performance is a measurable and testable value of a vehicles ability to perform in various conditions.
Durability / Corrosion engineering is the evaluation testing of a vehicle for its useful life. This includes mileage accumulation, severe driving conditions, and corrosive salt baths.
Package / Ergonomics Engineering: Package Engineering is a discipline that designs/analyzes other areas of the vehicle like the engine compartment, and the component to component placement. Ergonomics is the discipline that assesses the occupant's access to the steering wheel, pedals, and other driver/passenger controls.
Climate Control: Climate Control is the customer’s impression of the cabin environment and level of comfort related to the temperature and humidity.
Drivability: Drivability is the vehicle’s response to general driving conditions.
Manufacturing Engineers at Automobile companies are involved in a wide array of manufacturing activities. They plan and engineer the assembly of whole vehicles as well as the individual parts that go into the vehicles. Design and layout of equipment and people, machine rates and line rates, specification of automation equipment, and manufacturing safety procedures are all some of the jobs that Manufacturing Engineers do.
Manufacturing engineers at assembly plants plan out the body shop, engine and transmission placement, and the trim and chassis area of the final assembly. Seats, radios, interior trim panels and wheels are examples of parts that need to be manufactured for a vehicle and whose creation would be overseen by an Automobile Manufacturing Engineer.
An Automobile Manufacturing Engineer typically works with statistics and process controls, validating that the process that produces parts will always produce those parts with quality. They also search for ways to continuously improve the process between product upgrades generally the engineering related pure development procedures.
