On the optimization of automobile panel fitting

The difference between the sum of squared deviations and the maximum deviation was studied. The popular least square method refers to the former, but the criterion of many engineering geometrical problems, including fitting problems, often refers to the latter. As a typical case study this paper presents a new approach to the optimization of the automobile panel fitting aiming at minimizing the maximum deviation, based on a systematic analysis of the differential adjusting motion´s impact on the variations of gaps/flushes. Comparative calculations show: the conventional least square method may lead to a result with the maximum deviation over thirty percent higher than the actual optimal solution, obtained by the new method. Moreover, the latter can cope with different tolerances of different seams explicitly