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Different roof strength methods are applied on the 2003 Ford Explorer finite element (FE) model to achieve the current Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 216 requirements. Two different modification approaches are utilized. Additionally, the best design of each approach is tested dynamically, in rollover and side impact simulations. In the first approach, several roll cage designs are integrated in all pillars, roof cross-members, and in the side roof rails. A roll cage design with a strength-to-weight ratio (SWR) of 3.58 and 3.40 for driver and passenger sides, respectively, with a weight penalty of 18.54 kg is selected for dynamic test assessments. The second approach investigates different localized reinforcements to achieve a more reasonable weight penalty. A localized reinforcement of the B-pillar alone with a tube meets the new FMVSS 216 requirements with a weight penalty of 4.52 kg and is selected for dynamic analyses.

The research question investigated in this study is what are the key attributes of foot and ankle injury in the between-rail frontal crash? For the foot and ankle, what was the type of interior surface contacted and the type of resulting trauma? The method was to study with in-depth case reviews of NASS-CDS cases where a driver suffered an AIS=2 foot or ankle injury in between-rail crashes. Cases were limited to belted occupants in vehicles equipped with air bags. The reviews concentrated on coded and non-coded data, identifying especially those factors contributing to the injuries of the driver's foot/ankle. This study examines real-world crash data between the years 1997-2009 with a focus on frontal crashes involving 1997 and later model year vehicles. The raw data count for between-rail crashes was 732, corresponding to 227,305 weighted, tow-away crashes.

An evaluation of the four injury risk curves proposed in the NHTSA NCAP for estimating the risk of AIS≻=3 injuries to the head, neck, chest and AIS≻=2 injury to the Knee-Thigh-Hip (KTH) complex has been conducted. The predicted injury risk to the four body regions based on driver dummy responses in over 300 frontal NCAP tests were compared against those to drivers involved in real-world crashes of similar severity as represented in the NASS. The results of the study show that the predicted injury risks to the head and chest were slightly below those in NASS, and the predicted risk for the knee-thigh-hip complex was substantially below that observed in the NASS. The predicted risk for the neck by the Nij curve was greater than the observed risk in NASS by an order of magnitude due to the Nij risk curve predicting a non-zero risk when Nij = 0. An alternative and published Nte risk curve produced a risk estimate consistent with the NASS estimate of neck injury.

Far-side occupants are not addressed in current government regulations around the world even though they account for up to 40% of occupant HARM in side impact crashes. Consequently, there are very few crash tests with far-side dummies available to researchers. Sled tests are frequently used to replicate the dynamic conditions of a full-scale crash test in a controlled setting. However, in far-side crashes the complexity of the occupant kinematics is increased by the longer duration of the motion and by the increased rotation of the vehicle. The successful duplication of occupant motion in these crashes confirms that a sled test is an effective, cost-efficient means of testing and developing far-side occupant restraints or injury countermeasures.

This study tracks vehicle design changes and frontal crash test performance in NHTSA's NCAP and IIHS consumer information tests since the mid-90s for the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry. The objective was to provide insights into how passenger cars have changed in response to frontal consumer information tests. The history of major design changes for each model was researched and documented. The occupant injury measures from both NHTSA and IIHS were computed and the ratings compiled for several generations of both vehicles. Changes in vehicle crash pulse and occupant injury measures from both NCAP and IIHS tests, and from Canadian low speed rigid barrier tests, when available, were used to assess driver frontal protection for various vehicle generations. Loading of the rigid barrier in NCAP tests was used to evaluate front end stiffness changes over the years.

The objective of the present study is to develop a better understanding of the reasons for airbag non-deployment in frontal crashes that produce serious injuries. The FARS data shows an increasing trend of fatal crashes involving airbag non-deployment with a higher fatality risk in recent model year vehicles. The reported number of fatalities in such crashes has increased by about 50 percent (from 500 per year to 780 per year) in the last five years. The percentage of fatalities with non-deployments has doubled in vehicles model year 1998 and later compared to earlier model years. Multiple impacts contribute to about 90 percent of the FARS frontal crashes with non-deployments. Crashes with a curb hit or guardrail impact as the first harmful event and a narrow impact crash with a tree or pole as a subsequent harmful event is the most frequent crash scenario in non-deployment related fatal crashes.

In this study, the level of protection offered to rear seat occupants in frontal crashes is investigated. The Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and National Automotive Sampling System Crashworthiness Data System (NASS CDS) databases were used for the analyses. The investigation focused on: 1- estimating the fatality protection effectiveness of the rear seat position relative to the right front seat position, using the double paired comparison method, 2- evaluating the effect of control group selection method on effectiveness predictions, and 3- identifying trends in rear seat occupant protection over model years of vehicles. By applying a uniform control group to the double paired comparison analysis of FARS data, this study suggests that all ages of occupants are safer in the rear seat than in the right front seat. Effectiveness estimates ranged from 5.9% to 82% for different age groups of occupants.

The National Automotive Sampling System’s Crashworthiness Data System (NASS CDS) was used to study rear occupant injuries in frontal crashes. The risks of injury for the rear passengers of different age groups were calculated and compared to the risks of injury for the front occupants. Furthermore, the risks of injury were investigated for the rear and front adult occupants over model years of vehicles. Distribution of injuries among body regions and vehicle contact points were also investigated for the rear adult occupants. While the rear occupants were more protected than the front occupants in most of the groups studied, an increasing trend was observed in the risk of injury of the rear adult occupants over the model years of the vehicles.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the vehicle environment that a child occupant, between the ages of seven and thirteen years old, is exposed to in a real world crash. The focus of analysis is on those child occupants that are seated at the struck side in a lateral collision. This study was based on data extracted from the National Automotive Sampling System / Crashworthiness Data System (NASS/CDS) between years 1991-2006. Analysis was based upon the evaluation of the projected consequence of injury to the child occupants. The societal costs generated as a result of occupant injuries were quantified. The societal cost, or Harm, acts as a measure of consequence of occupant exposure to the vehicle environment, when involved in a collision. The Harm was determined as a function of ΔV, principal direction of force, vehicle extent of damage, the pattern of damage to the vehicle, and the magnitude of intrusion based on the occupant seating position.

Vehicle stiffness is one of the three major factors in vehicle to vehicle compatibility in a frontal crash; the other two factors are vehicle mass and frontal geometry. Vehicle to vehicle compatibility in turn is an increasingly important topic due to the rapid change in the size and characteristics of the automotive fleet, particularly the increase of the percentage of trucks and SUVs. Due to the non-linear nature of the mechanics of vehicle structure, frontal stiffness is not a properly defined metric. This research is aimed at developing a well defined method to quantify frontal stiffness for vehicle-to-vehicle crash compatibility. The method to be developed should predict crash outcome and controlling the defined metric should improve the crash outcome. The criterion that is used to judge the aggressivity of a vehicle in this method is the amount of deformation caused to the vulnerable vehicles when crashed with the subject vehicle.

To date, anthropomorphic test devices (ATDs) have not been designed with consideration for human motion in far-side impacts. Previous tests with a cadaver and a BioSID dummy at the Medical College of Wisconsin confirmed that the dummy does not suitably model the human motion. To further evaluate different ATDs in far-side crashes, MAthematical DYnamic MOdeling (MADYMO) was employed. The modeling showed that the motion of a Hybrid III, BioSID, EuroSid1, EuroSID2, or SID2s did not accurately reflect the motion of a human cadaver under the same impact configurations as the cadaver test. The MADYMO human facet model was found to closely reproduce the kinematics of the cadaver test. The effect of varying console designs on occupant kinematics is presented in this paper. The human facet model appears to be a good interim tool for the evaluation of countermeasures in far-side crashes.

This paper creates a worksheet to thoroughly document vehicle damage during an incompatible vehicle-to-vehicle frontal crash. This data form serves as a supplement to the current and already established NASS inspection forms. It will assist biomechanics research by determining the extent by which incompatibility caused or changed occupants' injuries through structural analysis of the vehicles. This study identifies deficiencies in the current NASS inspection system for compatibility, and develops new measurable parameters to document the crash and associate injury to it.

This paper uses NASS/CDS 1997-2004 to determine the crash factors that are most frequently associated with rollover fires. Rollover fire cases were analyzed by the NASS variables including vehicle type, fire origin, number of quarter-turns, and final rest position. Results show that the engine compartment was the most frequent location for the fire origin. The fuel tank was second in this category. The rest position on the roof was most frequently associated with fires in rollovers. However, the fire rate was not strongly influenced by the final rest position. High severity rollovers that involve more than eight quarter-turns or end-over-end motion had fire rates much higher than the average. An examination of 24 cases with major fires in recent model year vehicles found that impacts prior to the rollover occurred in more than half of the cases. All of the cases with leakage from the fuel tank had impacts prior to the rollover.

Automatic Crash Notification (ACN) technology provides an opportunity to rapidly transmit crash characteristics to emergency care providers in order to improve timeliness and quality of care provided to occupants in the post crash phase. This study evaluated the relative value of crash attributes in providing useful information to assist in the identification of crashes where occupants may be seriously injured. This identification includes an indication of whether a crash is likely to require a level of emergency response with higher priority than is needed for most crashes reported by ACN Systems. The ability to predict serious injury using groupings of variables has been determined. In this way, the consequence of not transmitting each variable can be estimated. In addition, the incremental benefit of voice communication is shown.

A biaxial test device was designed to obtain the material properties of aortic tissue at rates consistent with those seen in automotive impact. Fundamental to the design are four small tissue clamps used to grasp the ends of the tissue sample. The applied load at each clamp is determined using subminiature load cells in conjunction with miniature accelerometers for inertial compensation. Four lightweight carriages serve as mounting points for each clamp. The carriages ride on linear shafts, and are equipped with low-friction bearings. Each carriage is connected to the top of a central drive disk by a rigid link. A fifth carriage, also connected to the drive disk by a rigid link, is attached at the bottom. A pneumatic cylinder attached to the lower carriage initiates rotation of the disk. This produces identical motion of the upper carriages in four directions away from the disk center.

One of the leading causes of death in automotive crashes is traumatic rupture of the aorta (TRA) or blunt aortic injury (BAI). The risk of fatality is high if an aortic injury is not detected and treated promptly. The objective of this study is to investigate TRA mechanisms using finite element (FE) simulations of reconstructed real-world accidents involving aortic injury. For this application, a case was obtained from the William Lehman Injury Research Center (WLIRC), which is a Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN) center. In this selected crash, the case vehicle was struck on the left side with a Principal Direction of Force (PDoF) of 290 degrees. The side structure of the case vehicle crushed a maximum of 0.33 m. The total delta-V was estimated to be 6.2 m/s. The occupant, a 62-year old mid-sized male, was fatally injured. The occupant sustained multiple rib fractures, laceration of the right ventricle, and TRA, among other injuries.

In December 2003, fifteen participating Automobile Manufacturers announced the adoption of voluntary standards for geometric compatibility in frontal crashes. In an October 2003 report, Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) estimated that an 8 to 28 percent fatality reduction might be achieved with better geometric and stiffness compatibility (O’Neill, 2003). This benefit was based on comparing the fatality risks of car occupants in car-to-car collisions and in car-to-SUV collisions. Reduced occupant compartment intrusion was cited as the principal advantage gained by compatibility improvements. However, the study did not actually examine the role that intrusion played in causing the fatalities. This study examines the magnitude of serious injuries in frontal crashes that could be addressed by reducing occupant compartment intrusion. Each frontal vehicle-to-vehicle case in William Lehman Injury Research Center (WLIRC) data was examined to determine the cause of each injury.

In the effort to understand and solve the frontal crash compatibility problem, one needs to use values of frontal stiffness. Various definitions of stiffness have been used in other studies based on measurements from NHTSA's 35mph frontal NCAP test. Those definitions varied from assuming a linear stiffness based on static crush to more refined ones that vary with time dependent crush. A major consideration in selecting a method is the amount of vehicle damage that occurs in an incompatible crash. To partially address this issue, a method was introduced based on the energy absorbed in a front to front crash at 25mph approach speed. Four alternative definitions of stiffness were studied.

Seventeen full-scale crash tests were conducted to evaluate technologies to reduce the vulnerability of sidesaddle tanks on full size GM pickup trucks manufactured during the period 1973-1987. These vehicles were alleged by the U.S. Department of Transportation to be vulnerable in severe side impacts. The test program was intended to evaluate designs that would reduce vulnerability in all crash directions. The best test results were obtained by two strategies that relocated the tank to less vulnerable locations. The two locations were: (1) in the cargo bed (bed mounted tank) and (2) underneath the bed, ahead of the rear axle and between the frame rails (center-mounted tank). Tanks mounted in these locations were subjected to a series of crash tests that simulated severe front, side, rear and rollover crashes. The crash environment for these tests was more severe than required by FMVSS 301 “Fuel System Integrity”.

In a side impact, the occupants on both the struck, or near side, of the vehicle and the occupants on the opposite, or far side, of the vehicle are at risk of injury. Since model year 1997, all passenger cars in the U.S. have been required to comply with FMVSS No. 214, a safety standard that mandates a minimum level of side crash protection for near side occupants. No such federal safety standard exists for far side occupants. The mechanism of far side injury is believed to be quite different than the injury mechanism for near side injury. Far side impact protection may require the development of different countermeasures than those which are effective for near side impact protection. This paper evaluates the risk of side crash injury for far side occupants as a basis for developing far side impact injury countermeasures. Based on the analysis of NASS/CDS 1993–2002, this study examines the injury outcome of over 4500 car, light truck, and van occupants subjected to far side impact.