Two materials S-frame representation for improving crashworthiness and lightening

In this paper, different designs of a simplified front side rail structure of an automobile body (S-frame) from the point of view of crashworthiness and weight efficiency is studied. Various possible models of S-frame is presented and characteristics of each models are compared and discussed. It is shown that a hybrid S-frame made of steel and aluminum shows better characteristics from the point of view of passenger safety and weight efficiency.     

Analysis of injuries among pilots involved in fatal general aviation airplane accidents

The purpose of this study was to analyze patterns of injuries sustained by pilots involved in fatal general aviation (GA) airplane accidents. Detailed information on the pattern and nature of injuries was retrieved from the Federal Aviation Administration's autopsy database for pilots involved in fatal GA airplane accidents from 1996 to 1999. A review of 559 autopsies revealed that blunt trauma was the primary cause of death in 86.0% (N=481) of the autopsies. The most commonly occurring bony injuries were fracture of the ribs (72.3%), skull (55.1%), facial bones (49.4%), tibia (37.9%) and pelvis (36.0%). Common organ injuries included laceration of the liver (48.1%), lung (37.6%) heart (35.6%), and spleen (30.1%), and hemorrhage of the brain (33.3%) and lung (32.9%). A fractured larynx was observed in 14.7% of the cases, a finding that has not been reported in literature until now. It was observed that individuals who sustained brain hemorrhage were also more likely to have fractures of the facial bones rather than skull fractures.     

Metamodeling development for reliability-based design optimization of automotive body structure

Metamodels are commonly used in reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) due to the enormously expensive computation cost of numerical simulations. However, for large-scale design optimization of automotive body structure, with the increasing number of design variable and enhanced nonlinearity degree of structural performance, polynomial response surface which is commonly used for vehicle design optimization often suffers exponentially increased computation burden and serious loss of approximation accuracy. In this paper, support vector regression, along with other four complex metamodeling techniques including moving least square, artificial neural network, radial basis function and Kriging, is investigated for approximating frontal crashworthiness performance which is one of the most highly nonlinear performances. It aims at testing support vector regression and providing advanced metamodeling technique for RBDO of automotive body structure. Approximation results are compared in both accuracy and computational efficiency. Based on the frontal crashworthiness example, it is found that support vector regression and moving least square are preferable techniques to approximate structural performances with good accuracy. But support vector regression is recommended for its computational efficiency and better approximation potential. Moreover, the ensemble of support vector regression, moving least square, Kriging and artificial neural network is an effective alternative and is proved, in the RBDO example for the lightweight design of front body structure, to outperform any other single metamodel. The remarkable predominance indicates that the ensemble of support vector regression, moving least square, Kriging and artificial neural network holds great potential in approximating highly nonlinear performances for RBDO of automotive body structure.     

Development of generic multibody road vehicle models for crashworthiness

The crashworthiness analysis of road vehicles requires detailed data of the vehicles that the automotive manufacturers are, generally, unable to release due to commercial or legal restrictions. In the development of passive safety subsystems or substructures, the overall crash response of a vehicle model used to support it, must mimic that of the real vehicle; if this exists, regardless of any particular constructive detail of its structure provided that it is not located in the vicinity of such subsystem. This work proposes a methodology for the development of multibody models of road vehicles, for passive safety analysis, which include all general structural and mechanical features of real vehicles and start by exhibiting impact dynamic responses similar to the top of line vehicles. These vehicle models, designated as generic, do not require the knowledge of most of the particular details of the design of the real vehicle, which the manufacturers are unable to release, but can be adjusted to have crash responses similar to those of the real vehicle. Based on an existing finite element model of a car, which has all constructive features of vehicles of the chosen class, a multibody model is built applying the plastic hinge approach. By using a selected number of crash scenarios, defined in international standards such as the EuroNCAP, selected parameters of the vehicle multibody model are adjusted to ensure a good correlation between its impact responses and those of the finite element model. The crash responses are measured in terms of structural deformations, velocities and accelerations, occupant injury measures and structural energy absorption capabilities. Assuming that the plastic hinge constitutive equations of the multibody model are not exactly known, their parameters are used here as the multibody vehicle model that are adjusted. The methodology proposed is demonstrated by its application to the identification of the vehicle multibody model of a large family car for which the reference vehicle is available as a detailed finite element model.     

Occupant injury and fatality in general aviation aircraft for which dynamic crash testing is certification-mandated

Towards further improving general aviation aircraft crashworthiness, multi-axis dynamic tests have been required for aircraft certification (14CFR23.562) since 1985. The objective of this study was to determine if occupants in aircraft certified to these higher crashworthiness standards show a mitigated fraction of fatal accidents and/or injury severity.     

车辆正碰安全性的混合可靠度分析

研究汽车结构可靠性能优化问题,由于设计中原材料加工、装配等众多不确定因素,整车的舒适度及承受碰撞能力不符合可靠性标准的要求等,导致汽车的实际状况存在抗击模型不确定性,使结构可靠性准确计算变得较为困难。根据概率与非概率混合可靠度模型及其求解技术,结合有限元软件分析以及代理模型技术构造响应面,进行轿车正碰可靠性计算,通过计算获得可靠性指标区间。实际算例表明算法具有较高的计算效率及精度,对实际设计工作有一定参考价值。     

基于正面耐撞性仿真的轿车车身材料轻量化研究

以某轿车为研究对象,运用显式有限元理论,建立整车有限元模型,基于“汽车正面碰撞乘员保护设计规则(CMVDR294)”的耐撞安全性仿真,从满足整车正面耐撞安全性能的角度,分别采用高强钢和铝合金对车身主要覆盖件进行轻量化研究,使车身减质量分别达9.31 kg和53.10 kg,减质量效果达到11.30%和64.50%。对整车变形、整车与刚性墙的碰撞力、运动速度和加速度、主要零部件吸能等方面进行分析、评价,数值仿真验证了轻量化方案的可行性。