+ AGCO GmbH

Case Study

AGCO is a leading manufacturer of agricultural equipment designed to work reliably under normal, challenging operating conditions — and even when operator error or exceptional use occurs. Employing ANSYS software as a standard part of our design process gives us the confidence to quickly and cost effectively develop highly robust equipment that works in the wide range of conditions demanded by the market.Eberhard Würtele Stress EngineerAGCO GmbH

Tractors, harvesters and other agricultural equipment are used in rough terrain and under tough conditions. Immense forces are created when the heavy equipment is in operation. Beyond withstanding these forces, the machinery must endure loads from operator errors and use outside of normal operating conditions. Although agricultural equipment is very robust, the market is highly competitive, so manufacturers need to reduce development times and decrease their costs. AGCO relies on simulation with ANSYS software to maintain quality and its global leadership.

Business Challenges Engineers at AGCO must evaluate loading conditions from day-to-day equipment operation and from use outside of normal operations. The process becomes more complex as models grow

more detailed and the number of simulations increases. Assemblies include hundreds

of pretension bolts, nonlinear con-tact and large meshes. Engineers

need to reduce solver and model preparation times to decrease development times. Also, more

effi cient results evaluation and design study processes allow engineers to focus more on engineering their products.

Technology UsedANSYS® Professional NLS™, ANSYS Workbench™

Engineering Solution• Use bidirectional CAD interfaces in ANSYS

Workbench to transfer data from CAD systems.• Employ automatic contact and mesh

generation to prepare simulation models.• Defi ne bolt pretensions loads within ANSYS

Professional.

conditions from day-to-day equipment operation and from use outside of normal operations. The process becomes more complex as models grow

more detailed and the number of simulations increases. Assemblies include hundreds

ANSYS helps AGCO to reduce development times and maintain global leadership

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• Evaluate nonlinear contact behavior in critical contact regions of fl anges.

• Compare simulation results with test data.

Benefi ts• ANSYS Workbench allows a direct transfer of

CAD data from CAD system to the simulation model.

• Automatic contact and meshing generation in Workbench reduce model preparation times signifi cantly. The model contained 26 non-linear contact regions and 10 million degrees of freedom.

• Defi ning bolt pretension in ANSYS Professional for 146 pretension bolts in the assembly is simple and intuitive.

• Bolt issues were solved successfully using ANSYS simulation.

• Simulation results showed perfect agreement with test results in forces, contact sliding and structural stresses.

Company DescriptionAs a leading global manufacturer of agricultural equipment, AGCO off ers a full line of tractors, combines, hay tools, sprayers, forage and tillage equipment, which are distributed through 2,600 independent dealers and distributors in more than 140 countries worldwide. AGCO products are sold through four core brands: Challenger®, Fendt®, Massey Ferguson® and Valtra®. The diverse product line, global reach and techno-logical solutions help AGCO customers not only survive today’s changing landscape, but to also prosper.

Simulation at AGCO is supported by CADFEM GmbH.

Contact sliding distance

Stress distribution within casing

Automatic contact genera-tion in ANSYS Professional of the chassis of a Fendt 939 Vario (front axle housing, engine housing, middle housing)

AGCO