MIRA anticipates the future shock
Page 32
Page 33
Page 34
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Graham Montgomerie describes ne evolution of MIRA and examines some of the test work it undertakes
REGULAR READERS of CM will be very much aware of the vital part played by the MIRA proving ground in obtaining the detached vehicle performance data published in our road test reports.
Built within the extensive grounds of the Motor Industry Research Association, the proving ground is a very small part of the organisation. For over thirty years now, MIRA has played a vital part in gathering experience and information on behalf of the automobile industry. Not for nothing does the "R" in MIRA stand for "Research".
Although MIRA was established in 1946, its origins go back much further. In 1920 the Research Association of the British Motor and Allied Manufacturers (RABMAM) was set up. It was superseded later by the Research Department of the Institution of Automobile Engineers which, in 1945, merged with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. From this complicated background, MIRA emerged to undertake research on a co-operative basis for the UK motor industry.
Until 1971, the necessary finance came from subscriptions (including a block grant from the SMMT) which accounted for 50 per cent of the income. The remainder was supplied by the Government. This governmental support was tapered off over a five-year period, so MIRA now operates more as a contract organisation than as a pure research one.
Although it is a non-profitmaking "company'', MIRA nevertheless has to be commercially viable if it is to be of any help to the industry. Currently the turnover runs at £2m yearly, which means that £8,000 worth of contract business must be generated each day.
Project variety
The proving ground is only one small part of the MIRA story, and does in fact only provide eight per cent of the total income. The rest of the organisation is heavily involved in a great variety of projects related to the motor industry, including vehicle safety, aerodynamics, engines, materials, components and noise.
With the current and proposed legislation concerning vehicle safety, one of the first requirements of a company is that it first builds a prototype and then runs it into a concrete block! MIRA has full-scale crash facilities where most classes of vehicle can be accommodated and a variety of tests executed, eg, frontal barrier and rear and side mobile barrier.
To record the data, the instrumentation facilities include a range of more than 20 anthropometric dummies, 100 electronic recording channels on FM tape, a range of measuring cells and transducers and 12 high-speed cine cameras to provide accurate visual records.
Again with legislation very much in mind, MIRA is very busy with work into exhaust emissions — from both petrol and diesel engines. Measurement of emissions can be made from an engine running on a test bed, or from a complete vehicle running on a chassis dynamometer.
The measurements are made in accordance with the various legislative requirements which exist in various parts of the world, but MIRA also tries to anticipate future legislation and carries out test work accordingly. MIRA in fact claims that its laboratory was the first in the UK to be equipped to carry out work to these various test-cycle requirements.
MIRA does not simply represent vehicles. A significant part of its research work goes into the components which make up the final vehicle. Testing of component assemblies very often demands the construction of specialist individual test equipment and it is in this field in particular that MIRA has a wealth of experience.
A wide range of components can be tested, including crankshafts, stub axles, steering arms, gears, half-shafts, splines and wheels. Special machines have been constructed to test the durability and reliability of fifth-wheel couplings, parkingbrake assemblies and complete steering assemblies.
Vehicle aerodynamics have become increasingly relevant in the commercial vehicle field in recent years. MIRA has been involved for no less than 25 years. The equipment provides the means of measuring drag, lift and side forces, as well as helping in the development of vehicle heating and ventilating systems.
The MIRA full-scale wind tunnel can accommodate fullsize trucks and is equipped with an aerodynamic balance and a chassis dynamometer.
Investigation into engine problems is an intensive part of MIRA work. Past examples are research into power losses in engines, exhaust valve problems and the mechanism of oil loss past pistons.
A range of eight test-beds is available with either electric dynamometers or water brakes. Universal fixtures allow a wide variety of power units to be accommodated, with each bed having its own complete instrumentation.
Qualifications
Membership of MIRA is open to any vehicle or component manufacturer. The individual membership fee is related to the worldwide turnover of the company. The use of "worldwide" is important, as it means, for example, that if Daimler-Benz, Volvo or any of the truck importers wished to become members, then the fee would be proportional to the total turnover and not merely to that of the UK subsidiary. Currently Saab-Scania is the only full member of MIRA amongst the importers. The company's representative is Sverker Sjostrom of the Scania division. The availability of reports from MIRA depends to a large extent on who commissioned the research work in the first place. If a project was carried out on behalf of one individual member, then the results remain completely confidential, However if the work is the result of joint sponsorship from a number of companies or from the Department of Industry, then very often the report Will be issued.
If the Department of Industry has sponsored a research project, then it may want the information to be widely spread across the whole industry including smaller operators so the resultant report is made available to everybody, whether they be members of MIRA or not.
A good example of this is provided by a recent report on comparative testing of various aerodynamic devices. Under the official title of Assessment of proprietary devices for reducing the aerodynamic drag of commercial vehicles, this report was issued in December of last year following work carried out for the Dol.
In this project the drag of a lorry was measured in the MIRA full-scale wind tunnel and the effects of the various devices were measured. The test vehicle was a Ford D1614 rigid with a container on the back, the position of which could be altered to simulate a rigid with a close-up load or an artic with a larger gap between cab and trailer.
Results from this work showed that it would be possible to save around 1,100 litres (242ga1) of fuel on a vehicle covering 40,000knn (25,000 miles) per year. I won't enlarge upon the results, as MIRA hopes to be able to sell the report to any interested company! It is available from the Information Department at MIRA at a cost of £12.50, When some aerody namic devices can cost more than £200, the report is certainly worth the money.
One of the other little-known aspects of the MIRA work con cerns the collation and, if necessary, translation of all the written material concerning the automotive industry published anywhere in the world.
Every month MIRA publishes Automobile abstracts which, as its title suggests, provides a brief summary of each report or article on any automotive related topic recently published. Currently it is the only abstract of automobile literature available in English anywhere throughout the globe.
This service is again not restricted merely to members of MIRA. Automobile abstracts is available to any interested party at a subscription cost of £50 per year.
MIRA is also the sole European agent for publications from the Society of Automobile Engineers (SAE) in the USA.
These papers are shipped directly to MIRA from the printers and so, in theory. MIRA should get them at the same time as the SAE.
Future developments Because the cost of testing facilities has become prohibitive in certain areas, MIRA is able to fill a gap by sharing costs several ways. Further development of the MIRA facilities will include a full-scale climatic chamber which will cater for a temperature range between —30 and + 50C (-22 to 122°F). It will also be able to provide an effective wind speed of up to 210km /h (130mph) — but not at —30°C! This maximum wind speed will only be possible above 40°C (104° F).
Also intended for future capital investment is the provision of a large anechoic chamber where noise testing can be carried out under laboratory conditions. The vehicle will be installed on a roller dynamometer alongside a row of microphones which can be switched on in sequence to simulate the vehicle passing a single microphone on a pass-by test. Conspicuous throughout this article has been the appearance of acronyms. Now I will have to add another set — AICRO. This stands for the Association of Independent Contract Research Organisations, of which MIRA is an active member. The Association represents the largest corfcentration of UK-based research and development skilds specialising in a range of activities from aerodynamics and alternative energy to geotechnics and toxicology.
Although I mentioned that the proving ground represented only a small part of the MIRA work (and income), it is nevertheless a vital part which has brought with it an important spin-off. MIRA is now able to offer consultancy facilities to anyone who is interested in setting up their own proving ground. The first major overseas contract on these lines was signed recently with Hyundai in Kore6 for a six-figure sum — and there are others in the pipe-line.
Last, but by no means least in the MIRA organisation, is the activity of farming. Yes, 'that's right — farming! In the middle of MIRA is no less than 300 acres of good farming land, which is farmed by MIRA itself. In fact the first item of capital expenditure to be approved by director Dr Cedric Ashley after his appointment was the purchase of a combine harvester for £19,500!