Development and Validation of High Fidelity Vehicle Crash Simulation Models

Abstract

A program is underway to develop and validate a high fidelity finite element model of a full size car for crashworthiness analysis. This study is part of an overall program to develop a set of detailed finite element models for various vehicles that represent the range of vehicle types currently on the road. These vehicle models can then be used to study how future lightweight vehicles will change the overall crash safety of the fleet. The representative full-size car selected for this program was the Ford Crown Victoria. The model development required the teardown and digitisation of a vehicle to characterise the geometry and material testing to measure the mechanical properties. The digitised structural component surfaces were then used to generate the vehicle components in the finite element model. An important step in the overall model development is the validation of the model. Vehicle frontal and side impact tests had been performed on the Crown Victoria. Data from these full vehicle crash tests provided a primary set of measurements for validating the crash model. However, complete validation of the model based only on the existing vehicle crash tests is difficult because of the complexity of the crash responses and the limited number of measurements in the tests. Accurate simulation of the crash response requires modelling both the response of the individual structural components and the interaction between components to obtain the complete vehicle crash behaviour. To assist in the model validation some additional component tests were performed. The vehicle component tests included a front bumper rigid pole impact test, a front door rigid pole impact test, and a vehicle frame rigid wall impact test. The use of these component tests in model validation is shown to illustrate the approach. Language: en