{"id":68450,"date":"2025-09-08T03:37:04","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T07:37:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/?p=68450"},"modified":"2026-03-26T06:47:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T10:47:32","slug":"modular-virtual-prototypes-heavy-equipment-nvh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/simcenter\/modular-virtual-prototypes-heavy-equipment-nvh\/","title":{"rendered":"Modular virtual prototypes are the future of NVH development in the Heavy Equipment industry"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Heavy-duty workloads demand heavy machinery that inevitably generate a lot of noise and vibrations. This is not just disturbing for the environment and operator, excessive noise and vibrations can also lead to serious safety and productivity issues. That is why noise, vibration and harshness (NVH)<\/a> engineers are working hard to make heavy machinery run as quiet as possible in sectors like construction, agriculture, forestry, mining, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NVH development is particularly challenging in the Heavy Equipment industry however. This is due to the immense diversity of workloads, which requires a vast array of specialized machinery with multiple configuration options to fit the requirements and regulations of different markets. The result is that it is simply impossible for NVH engineers to physically test each configuration under development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What keeps NVH engineers in the Heavy Equipment industry up at night? The immense diversity of products and configurations needed to meet all types of workloads and markets. Image source: Brown’s Heavy Equipment<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Scalable NVH development with Virtual Prototype Assembly<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The solution? Adopting an emerging technology called Virtual Prototype Assembly (VPA)<\/a>. This technology uses hybrid component models<\/strong> (obtained using test- or CAE-based methods) to assemble modular virtual prototypes<\/strong> and predict their NVH performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

VPA allows NVH engineers to analyze and refine the NVH performance of any prototype configuration at any stage of development. The result is a more efficient and scalable NVH development process which identifies NVH problems and their solutions earlier than troubleshooting on physical prototypes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Virtual Prototype Assembly streamlines the NVH development process by replacing costly physical prototypes by more efficient and scalable modular virtual prototypes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In this article, I will introduce you to basics of VPA through a step-by-step case study on virtual mount tuning to optimize tractor cabin acoustics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 1: Model the components<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The starting point for VPA is the characterization of all relevant components using Component-based Transfer Path Analysis (C-TPA)<\/a>. The NVH performance of each component can be defined independently from the rest of the assembly using “invariant” component quantities (e.g., “blocked” forces<\/a>, FRFs<\/a>, dynamic stiffnesses<\/a>, \u2026) at its input\/output connection interfaces. Crucially, these quantities can be obtained using either test- or CAE-based methods depending on the stage of development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Components are modeled using “invariant” component quantities at their connection interfaces obtained using either test- or CAE-based methods depending on the stage of development.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Simcenter Testlab<\/a> offers a particularly powerful workflow for test-based component characterization by integrating Virtual Point Transformation (VPT)<\/a> in a streamlined measurement process<\/a>. This allows NVH engineers to efficiently obtain invariant component data in otherwise unmeasurable conditions (e.g., the center of a mount), improving the compatibility and accuracy of the resulting component models in the virtual prototyping process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Simcenter Testlab offers a streamlined workflow for test-based component characterization. The instrumentation is prepared on a virtual geometry and referenced during the measurement to automatically transform the results to the (virtual) point connection interfaces of the component model using Virtual Point Transformation.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For our tractor cabin case study, we have characterized the following three component models:<\/p>\n\n\n\n