Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation

Dr. Claudia Fajaro demonstrates lab equipment to grad student.

Center for Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation

Designing for the future with strong partnerships, innovation, and research

The Center for Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation (CAViDS) provides a platform for collaboration between industry and academia to develop breakthrough technical solutions that can have deep economic, social and environmental impact, while training the next generation of U.S. engineers.

  • High-Fidelity Computation Simulations: Driveline vibration - Drivetrain component heat transfer - Gear churning and sliding losses
  • Software Evaluation: CFD - FEA - NVH - Optimization
  • Experimental Measurement and Analysis: Complex flows - Engine torque - Gearbox eiciencyModel Development for Gear Life Prediction: Scuffng - Material selection for bending fatigue

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5343 USA
(269) 276-3240

Our expertise

CAViDS provides complete, multi-disciplinary solutions to challenging engineering problems with the extensive resources of WMU's College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Our researchers are prepared to collaboratively identify solutions that drive your organization's success.

Current researchers
  • Kevin Marsh, CAViDS Executive Director
  • Dr. William Liou, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering
  • Dr. Parviz Merati , professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering
  • Dr. Richard Meyer, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering
  • Dr. Sandun Kuruppu, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering
  • Dr. Giselle Rajabikhorasani, instructor of mechanical and aerospace engineering
  • Juan Miguel Sanchez Flores, mechanical engineering graduate student
  • Evan Swank, mechanical engineering undergraduate student

Supporting Personnel: Michael Konkel,  instructor of engineering design and manufacturing; Allin Karl, supervisor of engineering labs; Peter Thannhauser, supervisor of mechanical and aerospace engineering labs; and  Mark Hirsch 

  • Design and Development of a High-Speed Test Gear Test Stand.
  • Investigation of Gear Churning Loss Reduction through Experimental and Computational Methods.
  • Development of Physics-Based Models for Gear Sliding Losses and Scuffing Prediction.
  • Thermal Modeling and Experimental Testing of a High-Speed Gearbox,
  • Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Software Evaluation.

For specific project inquiries, please contact Dr. Claudia Fajardo-Hansford.

WMU is committed to pursuing applied, high-impact R&D projects by leveraging academia-industry collaboration. Our center provides the catalyst for these partnerships.

—Dr. Claudia Fajardo-Hansford, director
View of Floyd Hall in winter against bright blue sky

Access the resources you need

Our extensive resources and renown researchers are located in Floyd Hall on WMU's Parkview Campus

Benefits of partnering with CAViDS

As the vehicle industry continues to evolve, it is crucial for the state of Michigan to maintain its leading presence through sustained research and development, workforce education and training. CAViDS helps fill this role through its applied research and technologies that directly impact product design, manufacturing, reliability, and profitability. 

Located in the industrial Midwest, Western Michigan University’s engineering faculty and staff have assisted the vehicle industry with applied research and technologies that have directly impacted product design, manufacturability, quality, and therefore, profitability. WMU’s Center for Advanced Vehicle Design and Simulation (CAViDS) was established to synergize the technical competence in the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences to develop innovative, numerical-simulation driven, applied research to help advance the design and analysis capability of our industry partners, while meeting the academic mission of the University. CAViDS provides a platform for collaboration between industry and academia to develop breakthrough technical solutions that can have deep economic, social and environmental impact, while training the next generation of  U.S. engineers.

  • Resource leveraging: Annual membership enables participation in multiple core projects and monthly interaction with industry members
  • Workforce pipeline development: Direct involvement of engineering students under expert faculty supervision
  • Expertise: Access to laboratories, facilities, and equipment
  • Flexibility: Two-tier membership may be adjusted on an annual basis (e.g., to accommodate exploratory projects)
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