Speed Determination in Car-Truck Sideswipe Collisions

Sideswipe collisions are difficult to analyze because momentum changes are small; when the collision involves a truck and a passenger vehicle, the difficult becomes the impossible because of the weight disparity between the two vehicles. A method of determining the pre-impact speed of the truck, when the pre-impact speed of the passenger vehicle is known, based on the configuration of the cycloidal marks left on the passenger vehicle by the truck tires, is presented. Graphical and analytical procedures are used to solve representative problems in typical situations. Limitations and suggestions for field-testing the process are discussed.