Thermal dummy for highly automated vehicles: Segmentation-focused CAD design, additive manufacturing and CFD model

• 3D-printed segmented 50th-percentile male dummy for local comfort studies. • Movement-space analysis enables upright, lounge, and near-supine postures. • Modular ASA design supports low-cost manufacturing, repair, and cable routing. • Dummy geometry with 25 prepared sensor mount positions • CFD-linked workflow matched local equivalent-temperature patterns. Local thermal comfort in compact indoor environments and vehicle cabins is governed by spatially non-uniform air temperature and velocity fields, radiative boundary conditions, and posture-dependent exposure, which becomes increasingly relevant for future non-driving-related tasks. This paper presents the segmentation-focused mechanical design and additive manufacturing of a modular thermal dummy, together with a sensor-consistent CFD-linked digital twin for equivalent-temperature-based assessment of local thermal comfort in non-uniform cabin environments. The dummy reproduces the external geometry of a 50th-percentile male and implements joint ranges derived from movement-space analyses to enable reproducible upright and reclined postures. A CAD-to-fused deposition modeling (FDM) workflow in ASA is used to realize a cost-efficient, serviceable structure with replaceable components and integrated internal cable routing. The dummy provides 25 prepared sensor mount positions, with sixteen T eq sensors used in the demonstrated measurement configuration and aligned with comfort-critical body regions and the segment definitions applied in T eq comfort-zone mapping. Combined numerical and experimental calibration yields a typical equivalent-temperature uncertainty below 1 K under reference conditions. The digital twin shares the same geometry, posture, segmentation, and sensor patch definition and enables sensor-consistent interpretation of local equivalent-temperature distributions for the investigated setup. The combined dummy–digital-twin workflow supports reproducible local comfort assessment, structured interpretation of measured T eq fields, and early-stage screening of cabin concepts under non-uniform thermal boundary conditions.