Optimization of elastomeric passive engine mount using direct optimization method

An ideal engine mount should be able to completely isolate the engine vibration which is caused due to the engine Noise, Vibration and Harshness characteristics. Vibration in an automobile is due to different parts of the automobile, one of the main sources of vibration is the engine. In engine, the vibration is mainly due to drive trains. Hence, it is very important to optimize the engine mount to reduce vibration at the source itself, to increase the comfort of the passenger. In this paper, standard passive engines mount which is available in market is used for optimization which is fed into the Ansys for shape optimization by fixing the surface to be retained and necessary boundary condition is applied to obtain an optimized shape, both of the models i.e. standard model and optimized model is subjected to dynamic analysis to obtain the stiffness. The stiffness obtained in optimized model was less when compared with that of the standard model. Since the shape and stiffness of the mount are optimized, the vibration transferred from the engine to the compartment is reduced as well as the life of the mount is also improved.