A Procedure to Evaluate Aircraft Crash Floor Pulses

The paper presents a rational method by which aircraft floor pulses can be defined and their effect on the seat-occupant system evaluated by using the pulses to obtain seat test performance data. The results of recent analyses of a transport airplane exposed to a candidate crash scenario along with seat test data are provided. The results of full-scale crash test analyses of general aviation aircraft are also addressed. It is shown that modeling of aircraft to obtain floor responses can produce a wide range of pulse definitions. It is not always obvious which pulse configuration may be more deleterious to the seat or occupant, without a procedure to compare seat-occupant response. Seat-occupant response evaluation requires that a set of test data and performance criteria parameters be established, Using an analytical approach correlated with test data, provides a basis for such an evaluation. A step-by-step procedure is evolved and comparisons of different pulses are illustrated.