ABSTRACT  

  Among various efforts pursued to produce fuel efficient vehicles, light weight engineering (i.e. the use of low-density structurally-efficient materials, the application of advanced manufacturing and joining technologies and the design of highly-integrated, multi-functional components/sub-assemblies) plays a prominent role. In the present work, a composite automotive design methodology has been presented and subsequently applied to the development and assembly of the inner and outer skeletons of a light weight composite Toyota Camry door panel. The door design has been specifically considered with respect to its weight while meeting the requirements /constraints pertaining to the structural and ascetic performances, crashworthiness, durability and manufacturability. In the lamination procedure, the number and orientation of the composite plies, the local laminate thickness and the shape of different door panel segments (each characterized by a given composite-lay-up architecture and uniform ply thicknesses) are used as design variables. The methodology developed in the present work is subsequently used to carry out the lamination and assembly of the front door on Toyota Camry vehicle, model year 2001(more specifically, to the inner and outer skeletons of the door panels). The emphasis in the present work is placed on highlighting the scientific and engineering issues accompanying composite door lamination and assembly design, and less on the outcome of such process and the materials resources/architecture needed to support such activity.