Occupant Protection via Frontal Crash Testing Analysis

Abstract

During frontal collisions, two central characteristics that define a vehicle’s crashworthiness are the occupant compartment deceleration magnitude and the level of occupant compartment intrusion. The deceleration severity determines seat belt loading for restrained occupants and the severity of secondary impacts of occupants against interior structures. Occupant compartment intrusion diminishes the survival space and increases the probability of individual occupants receiving worst injuries. Proper evaluation of a vehicle’s crashworthiness requires full scale crash testing as per standards defined by FMVSS 208, and this physical testing could be supplemented by virtual testing. The 208 standard specifies performance requirements for the vehicle in order to reduce the number and severity of the occupant injuries. FMVSS 208 crash testing involves rigid barrier impact tests at 30 mph, and the vehicle must be certified for all impact angles from −30 to +30 degrees. Allowance is made for the manufacturer to substitute engineering judgement for actual testing at each angle. The agreement of the vehicle to the test requirements ensures a reasonable degree of occupant safety. This study investigates virtual frontal testing to replicate severe crashes resulting in occupant compartment intrusion. The study is conducted using a validated FEA model of a 1998 Chevrolet S-10 standard cab pickup truck. It details simulation results from a variety of impact angles and velocities in order to determine the best potential test procedure for a frontal crash scenario. The results of this computational analysis demonstrate the offset frontal MDB (vehicle-to-vehicle) impact test procedure to be rigorous and capable of evaluating both the aspect of crashworthy performance of the vehicle. This test procedure resulted significant cabin intrusion along with cabin deceleration severity comparable to frontal rigid barrier 30 mph full width test.