MBtech Presents the "Reporter" Pick-up Study to the North American Market at the SAE Congress

SINDELFINGEN, Germany, March 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- As a media representative we cordially invite you to our press conference in which we will introduce the MBtech Reporter and numerous other innovations in greater detail:  

MBtech Group SAE Press Conference

on April 12, 2011, from 2 pm to 2.30 pm

at the MBtech exhibition stand #337

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110330/NY74103)

For further information please see this press release.

• "Reporter" pick-up study showcases MBtech's full-vehicle competence
• Rapid prototyping for the North American Market: Lean development processes
• Expert presentation covering visual loop testing for camera-based driver assistance systems

The SAE World Congress at the Detroit Cobo Hall is an international convention for automotive engineers from all over the world. It takes place from April 12 to 14, 2011 in downtown Detroit. The convention includes international lectures, ride-and-drive events and a specialist exhibition which only features innovations. The MBtech region North America has once again been recognized as an innovator and is prominently represented with an exhibition stand (#337) and an expert lecture: The innovation, the MBtech "Reporter", is introduced to the American market for the first time. The "Reporter" pick-up study was developed and designed in-house by MBtech and clearly demonstrates the comprehensive range of engineering and consulting services provided by the company.

MBtech's future in North America shows promises of continuing growth

In the past year MBtech has significantly expanded its competences and capacities at its branches in Troy, Michigan, and in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in particular. At the beginning of the year the engineers in Tuscaloosa relocated to a larger project office in order to be able to provide customers with better support. "We are pursuing a clear growth strategy for the North American market", stated Juergen Kiehne, President MB-technology NA LLC & MBtech ATP LLC. "This includes plans to establish a foothold on the west coast, on one hand, and also to utilize our expertise as an engineering and consulting service provider to the benefit of our customers, in order to consolidate existing customer relationships, acquire new customers and address new branches. Investments in MBtech's own testing tracks in Laredo, Texas, are also firmly planned."

MBtech "Reporter" - the basis for full-vehicle competence

At the SAE Congress MBtech utilizes the "Reporter" to demonstrate the company's abilities in terms of full-vehicle competence and also its impressive engineering and consulting services portfolio. The "Reporter", the innovative pick-up study which MBtech developed and designed as an in-house innovation project and presented to the branch at the IAA Commercial Vehicles 2010 in Germany, is demonstrated using a 1:4 scale model. The study displays a resource-saving drive system solution for a light commercial vehicle for delivery transport which can be implemented today. The "Reporter" is driven by a full-hybrid solution known as the "DualX E-Drive", This drive system is based on a 70 kilowatt electric motor and a compressed natural gas powered 1.2 liter, 75 kilowatt combustion engine. As a result, the pick-up study achieves a calculated maximum speed of 81 mile per hour and has a total range of more than 186 miles. In pure electric mode the vehicle has a range of up to 35 miles when measured in accordance with the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC). The electric motor powers the rear axle and the four cylinder combustion engine powers the front wheels. As a result the engines can work completely independently and either alternately or simultaneously. This enables the vehicle to realize an intelligent all-wheel drive system, when required. Three driving programs can be selected from the cockpit: "eco" for electric operation in inner-city, "4range" for low fuel consumption and long range and "4dynamic" in order to utilize the power of both engines for maximum driving pleasure.

With the specialist, CPS, MBtech ultimately found the ideal partner for realizing its idea of a removable "solar top", It delivers up to 266 Watts and thus enough power to run the air conditioner when at a standstill – or reduce the load on the on-board power system when driving and thus further reduce fuel consumption. "With this concept vehicle we demonstrate that `we can develop´," stated Hartmut Tresp, President MBtech Group. "Possible customers gain an impression of how MBtech's engineers and consultants think, and that we are a strong partner when it comes to generating added value through innovative, modular and future-safe solutions."

Rapid prototyping for the North American Market

This package of attractive solutions for lean processes also includes the rapid prototyping competence, which MBtech now offers to the North American market: The ability to produce prototype parts on special 3D printers on the basis of CAD data generated shortens the development times, dramatically in some cases. As a result, the early error diagnosis serves to reduce the number of rejections and also enables quality tests and design adaptations during the design phase itself and long before the costly manufacture of the tools. Suppliers and OEMs both profit from the significantly shortened time-to-market as rapid prototyping enables an earlier approval or certification of their designs. "Our customers continue to have the option of utilizing our engineering and CAD know-how as our engineers prepare the data and can directly eliminate the errors in the data itself," explains Juergen Kiehne. Thanks to the company's consulting know-how, MBtech is also a reliable partner when it comes to integrating rapid prototyping into its customers' own development processes.

Automated testing of camera-based driver assistance systems with PROVEtech:VL

The presentation given by Florian Schmidt, Development Engineer Tools & Equipment, on April 13, 2011 at 9 a.m. in Room D003C targets efficient testing processes embedded in the development processes. The title of the lecture is "Securing the path for camera systems by visual loop testing", An increasing number of driver assistance systems – from lane departure warning to fatigue warning onward to blind spot warning or traffic sign recognition – are based on the analysis of camera images. As a number of these advanced driver assistance systems even intervene in the driving process itself, any malfunctions must be eliminated. Currently this process consists of a mix of software and hardware function tests combined with real world test runs. Although Hardware-in-the-Loop (HiL) or Software-in-the-Loop (SiL) tests have become the norm for other electronic control units, camera-based systems lack the photo-realistic stimulation through image information. In order to guarantee precisely this, MBtech has developed a Visual Loop (VL) procedure based on the PROVEtech Tool Suite. In his presentation, Florian Schmidt illustrates the theoretical and technical background underlying the testing of camera-based advanced driver assistance systems and presents the visual loop testing procedure in detail.

The services presented at the SAE World Congress represent the comprehensive range of services provided by MBtech's four segments: vehicle engineering, powertrain solutions, electronics solutions and consulting. Thanks to a flexible, worldwide network of experts MBtech can contribute its expertise to interdisciplinary projects spanning all of the company's segments. MBtech has also set the course for continuing growth in the North American region by reorganizing the sales and technical responsibilities: Four regional managers cover the North American market, which encompasses Canada, the USA and Mexico. "The Vice Presidents also bear technical responsibilities at the same time", stated Juergen Kiehne. "This enables us to increase the added value for our customers by means of better and more customized support."

About the MBtech Group

The MBtech Group is an internationally leading engineering and consulting company focusing on the automotive industry. The company has 2600 employees at locations in Europe, North America and Asia. In 2010 the MBtech Group generated a turnover of 300 million euros.

MBtech is distinguished by the tightly meshed development and consulting services covering the entire automotive value chain. The MBtech brand combines all of its products and services into four segments: MBtech vehicle engineering, MBtech powertrain solutions, MBtech electronics solutions and MBtech consulting.

Regardless of whether components, systems or modules, new development, integration or testing are required: MBtech supports automobile manufacturers and suppliers beginning with the detailed specifications, covering the design, calculation and testing onward to series maturity. MBtech combines these engineering competencies with tailored consulting services which enable customers to best utilize their technologies and innovations – and thus achieve clear competitive advantages.

MBtech has been active in the USA since 1998. The American market is important because MBtech focuses on local proximity to the customer. Since establishing the MB-technology NA LLC and MBtech ATP LLC subsidiaries, project offices have been opened in both the south and south-western USA. The headquarters are located in Troy, Michigan and concentrate on projects in MBtech's vehicle engineering, consulting and electronics solutions segments. MBtech operates its own proving ground in Laredo, Texas, which is provided to customers for test runs and also customer events. The US manufacturing engineering and design center is located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. All of the services are offered equally throughout all of North America to the benefit of MBtech's customers.

SOURCE MBtech Group