Passenger Car Jack Stress Analysis Using Multi-Body Dynamics and Finite Element Methods

Abstract

Passenger car jacks consist of two main types, hydraulic and pantograph. The latter is the most widely used because it is lightweight and compact. This research presents stress analysis of pantograph jack. In this research, at first, dynamic of a passenger car jack, treated as rigid body system with connecting joints, was numerically analyzed to evaluate the reaction forces at the joints. The jack strokes were varied from 183 to 320 mm. Later, the calculated reaction forces were employed in the finite element model to investigate the stress distribution in each body. The stress results obtained from finite element method were compared with experimental result. It was found that the stress results from both methods are consistent and have the same trend. The maximum stress, predicted using finite element method, is found in the Arm Upper (Right) with safety factor 1.24 - 3.73. Therefore, this research can be used as a guideline to design and develop a passenger car jack having optimum size.