Impact crash analyses of an off-road utility vehicle – part II: simulation of frontal pole, pole side, rear barrier and rollover impact crashes

Abstract

This paper, Part II of two, presents the simulations of various impact crashes for an off-road utility vehicle (OUV) to assess the structural crashworthiness and the potential occupant injuries. The approach is to employ a transient dynamic, large-strain, material non-linear finite-element analysis (FEA) using LS-DYNA, with model validations, which were addressed in Part I of this two-part paper. The full vehicle finite-element model (FEM) is established by integrating the validated body structure, front bumper, chassis components, powertrain components, fuel tank, seats and container. Structural deformations and internal energies are extracted from simulation results for evaluating crashworthiness of the full vehicle structure. Head Injury Criterion (HIC) and Thoracic Trauma Index (TTI) obtained from the dummy are used to assess the potential injuries of occupant during the impact crashes. The simulation results help identify weaker parts of body structure for future vehicle design improvement.