Ford Uses Pingpong Balls to Measure Interiors

Ford is confident that the all-new 2013 Ford Escape has one of the roomiest interiors in its class. But interior of using rulers or tape measures to convey just how much space is available, Ford used another method: pingpong balls.

 
The new Escape can accommodate approximately 56,778 pingpong balls. While that may seem irrelevant at first, Ford engineers contest that pingpong balls are really a more accurate way to get the volume of an odd-shaped space, like a glove compartment.

 
“It was just a quirky idea that came out of a team brainstorm,” said Eric Jackson, Vehicle Architecture supervisor. “But we then did some studies using pingpong balls and found capacities were more consistently measured.”

 
Using a measuring tape to gauge the volume of glove boxes, center consoles and other small areas of a vehicle proved to be ineffective, as it often resulted with different results due to the wide variations of the method. However, when two people use pingpong balls to measure volume, they are more likely to get the same answer.

 
Ford engineers have developed a cubic measurement for each pingpong ball that accounts for the open space in between a stack of balls. Then, the pingpong balls were inserted into storage spaces to determine total volume of a space.  Naturally, computers were also used in conjunction with pingpong balls to accurately compute interior volumes.

 
Ultimately, all this measurement is critical to ensure that the new Escape is designed to meet the needs of its diverse owners.

 
Sejal Shreffler, Ford Accommodation and Usage engineer, added, “Our team scans dozens of consumer goods from iPads to mountain bikes and wheelchairs to ensure these objects not only fit into our vehicles, but that there is a proper place for them.”

 
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Tagged as: 2013, design, ford escape, interior volume, pingpong balls
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