ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of a number of tools used in various phases of the vehicle development process. The tools provide information in the form of data or their presentation to visualize and understand certain situations. Software applications for collecting, organizing, recording/storing, and displaying, and data manipulation tools such as spreadsheets, database management, data plotting tools, project management, and computer-aided design tools for visualization of products and processes are examples of general-purpose tools. Measurement and test equipment primarily used in engineering verification of entities also involves many specialized tools. A vast number of computer-aided engineering tools are used in many design, engineering, and manufacturing areas in the automotive industry. Benchmarking is probably the most commonly used and popular tool to understand design and construction issues within various automotive systems. Most systems design standards and guidelines are generally documented and maintained by the attribute engineering and/or functional engineering offices of the vehicle manufacturers.
