An Analytical Management of Frontal Crash Impact Response

The rotational behavior of the vehicle in the vertical plane at frontal collision against a flat barrier often plays an important role with respect to an evaluation of passenger compartment integrity and occupant protection.

An analytical method to examine the degree of influence of vehicle front end parameters, both on the behaviour of the vehicle and its occupant, is presented, employing a two-dimensional finite element vehicle model and a two-dimensional lumped-mass occupant model.

The feasibility of the method is discussed by comparing the calculated results with the experimented ones, in relation to the behaviour of passenger compartment and its occupant injury measure.