Development of a Vehicle Suspension Finite Element Model for Kerb Impact Simulations

The Ford Motor Company Human Body Finite Element Model (FHBM) was validated against rib dynamic tension and 3-point bending tests. The stress-strain and moment-strain data from the tension and bending simulations respectively were compared with human rib specimen test data. The model used represented a 50th percentile adult male. It was used to compare chest deflection and chest acceleration as thoracic injury indicator in blunt impact and belted occupants in front sled impact simulations. A 150 mm diameter of 23.4 kg impactor was used in the blunt impact simulations with impact speeds of 2, 4, and 8 m/s. In the Front sled impact simulations, single-step acceleration pulses with peaks of 10, 20, and 30 g were used. The occupants were restrained by 3-point belt system, however neither pretensioner nor shoulder belt force limiter were used. The external force, head acceleration, chest deflection, chest acceleration, and the maximum values of Von Mises stress and plastic strain were the model outputs. The results showed that the external contact force, head acceleration, chest deflection, and chest acceleration in the blunt impact simulations varied between 1.5–7 kN, 5–28 g, 18–80 mm, and 8–40 g respectively. The same responses varied between 7–24 kN, 13–40 g, 15–50 mm, and 16–46 g respectively in the front sled impact simulations. The maximum Von Mises stress and plastic strain were 50–127 MPa, and 0.04–2% respectively in the blunt impact simulations and 72–134 MPa, and 0.13–3% respectively in the sled impact simulations.

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Numerical Analysis of Vehicle Occupant Responses during Rear Impact Using a Human Body Model

Applied Mechanics and Materials ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.566.480 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 566 ◽

pp. 480-485 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jonas A. Pramudita ◽

Shunsuke Kikuchi ◽

Yuji Tanabe

Keyword(s):

Finite Element ◽

Numerical Analysis ◽

Finite Element Model ◽

Real World ◽

Element Model ◽

Vehicle Occupant ◽

Body Model ◽

Rear Impact ◽

Multi Body ◽

Impact Simulations

Understanding vehicle occupant responses during real-world rear collision accidents is very important in the development of appropriate safety technologies for neck injury lessening. In this study, numerical analysis of vehicle occupant responses during rear impact were conducted by using a human multi-body model, a seat finite element model and crash accelerations obtained from real-world accidents. The human multi-body model was developed based on the body characteristics of a typical Japanese male, including the outer body geometry, inertial properties of body segments and passive joint characteristics. The seat finite element model was extracted from a detailed car finite element model. A small modification was done to the seat model to deal with the rear impact simulations. The crash accelerations were obtained from the drive recorder database of rear collision accidents occurred in Japan. Several crash accelerations were selected and used as input conditions during the rear impact simulations. Kinematic responses of the occupants during the accidents can be reasonably predicted by the simulations. Furthermore, different level of accelerations leads to different kinematics responses that may cause variation in injury occurrence and injury severity.

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Improved Truck Model for Roadside Safety Simulations: Part II—Suspension Modeling

Transportation Research Record Journal of the Transportation Research Board ◽

10.3141/1797-08 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 1797 (1) ◽

pp. 63-71 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Paolo Tiso ◽

Chuck Plaxico ◽

Malcolm Ray

Keyword(s):

Finite Element ◽

Finite Element Model ◽

Element Model ◽

Vehicle Suspension ◽

Crash Test ◽

Test Vehicle ◽

Roadside Safety ◽

Pickup Truck ◽

Safety Research ◽

Roadside Hardware

The 2000-kg pickup truck is a very important vehicle in roadside safety research because it is specified in many of the tests in NCHRP Report 350. The characteristics of the pickup truck make it a very demanding crash test vehicle. Because the 2000-kg pickup truck is an important crash test vehicle, it was the very first vehicle chosen for development of a finite element model. The nonlinear finite element program LS-DYNA has become an important feature of roadside hardware design and analysis in recent years, and much of the success of these modeling efforts is partly caused by the availability of a good 2000-kg pickup truck model. Like all models, the model has evolved over the past decade. New features and improvements have been added continuously to the model by many different teams to solve specific analysis problems. One particular area where there has been a great deal of activity is in the area of modeling the suspension properties of the vehicle. Suspension response is particularly important for 2000-kg pickup truck impacts because the vehicle often experiences stability problems in impacts with roadside hardware. A number of improvements and modifications to Version 9 of the NCAC 2000-kg pickup truck model are summarized. These improvements involved changing the finite element model, changing element properties, and obtaining suspension response properties from physical tests. The 2000-kg truck model was then validated against a series of low-speed, live-drive tests with an instrumented pickup truck. The improved model provides more realistic vehicle suspension response than earlier models and should prove to be a valuable addition to future finite element modeling activities.

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