3. Conclusion

Predicting the durability of a mechanical part with precision is still difficult due to the large number of influencing parameters, their interdependencies, and the associated complex failure mechanisms. This contribution focuses on cylinder head development experience, where manufacturing and material parameters were taken into account, and their respective effects on fatigue at low, high and very high cycle counts were estimated by numerical simulation.

By taking more influencing parameters into account, geometry can be optimized to produce lightweight, cost-effective, high-performance parts. Compared with traditional, conservative methods, this certainly translates into higher development effort and cost.