Study and failure analysis of non-drive automotive rear axle of heavy commercial vehicle

The non-drive automotive rear axle beam of a heavy commercial vehicle, 35T gross vehicle weight (GVW), 8x2 Truck, is undergoing bending failure on the field (failed axle beam). The failure is primarily due to the overloading of the vehicle by the customer. The paper analyses the failed rear axle shaft of the vehicle and highlights the regions of failure in the axle cross-section and its impact on performance and life. A three-dimensional (3D) computer-aided design (CAD) engineering model of the failed axle beam is modelled on Solid Works software. The 3D model is imported into finite element analysis (FEA) software, Altair Hyper Works to create a finite element model, carry out linear static, modal, and fatigue analysis and study the stress/strain induced in the failed axle beam. Based on the results obtained from the three analyses, the axle beam will undergo cross-sectional and material changes to eliminate the failure and improve product quality and life.