Hyperelastic Material Modeling of Natural Rubber Compounds and Finite Element Analysis of Bushing Performance in Automobile

The design process in automobile industry requires to predict the stiffness of rubber busing materials. The behavior of rubber compound can be simulated using the strain energy density function. It is needed to consider the change of the material properties because the compression deformation caused by the swaging process of the busing. In this study, numerical simulations of the stress-strain curve including the swaging process were carried out using the finite element method and compared with experimental data. The Ogden 3rd model of strain energy density functions predicted the behavior of the busing with natural rubber compound. The stress-strain curves of the rubber busing was calibrated using that the initial compression of the swaging process was the 4.6% strain. Compared to the stiffness of the bushing without swaging effect, the stiffness was improved by 45% and had 99.6% accuracy with the actual test results.