A SEMINAR

ON
CRASHWORTHINESS
by

SANTHOSH.N

WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY

CRASHWORTHINESS
Ability of vehicle to prevent injuries
to the occupants in the event of
collision
Deals with primarily with second
collision.
Cause of the accident is considered
irrevalent in crashworthiness cases.

IMPORTANT FACTORS IN
CONSIDERATION FOR DETERMINING
CRASHWORTHINESS
Could the vehicle occupants have
fared better
Could

some feature that was

lacking in the vehicle have reduced
the occupant injuries

Crashworthiness not same

as vehicle safety
Vehicle safety is determined by
both crashworthiness and
accident avoidance features
such as anti-lock brakes and
wider tires.
Crashworthiness features
include as discussed before.

Concerns in crashworthiness
Basically,

crashworthiness is
concerned with whether the
manufacture designed the vehicle
and its components so that it is safe
for any reasonably foreseeable use
Manufacturing error
Design error
Failure to warn

Second collision
The second collision is a collision
following the impact of the
vehicle and occupant contacting
the vehicle the vehicle structure or
being ejected from the vehicle.
Restraint system of the occupant
within the vehicle prevents the
second collision.

Features that contribute to a

vehicle crashworthiness include
Seat belts

 Air bags:

Functional door
latches:

 Side impact zone

Front and rear crumple zone

TOYOTA

volvo G-40

 Sturdy seat backs

Safe fuel system

Purpose of vehicle
restraints
A vehicle restraint system is generally
compromised of the lap belt, shoulder belt,
inertia reel mechanism, seat seat back and belt
and seat attachments to the structure of the
vehicle.
It is associated with devices to cushion the blow
or absorb energy from the second impact.
Padded dashboard or an energy absorbing
mechanism at the bottom of the seat to lesssen
Vertical loading on the occupant.

INEVITABLE SITUATION

Principles of automotive safety

design

Roof structure design

Door latch design

Automotive window design

Interior design

Seat design

Side impact design

The physics behind

crashworthiness
Kinematics: Analysis of motion
Velocity
Acceleration
Newtons laws of motion
Dynamics: Analysis of forces & their
effects.

OTHER FACTORS:HUMAN
FACTORS

Psychotropic agents (drugs)

Driver performance
Reaction times
Driving conditions
Driving terrain
Knowledge of the conditions and
terrain
Performance of the vehicle
Rules of the land

RESEARCH PROGRAMS

ULSAB-AVC (ultra light steel auto body)

(advanced vehicle concepts)

Is the most recent addition to the global steel

industrys series of initiatives offering steel
solutions to the challenges facing automakers
around the world to increase the fuel efficiency
of automobiles, while improving safety and
performance and maintaining affordability.

CONCLUSION
Research efforts as the (ULSAB) project
exemplify the attempt to optimize the use
of steel in automobile design. Also of
importance are efforts to develop new
high-strength steels as replacements for
carbon steels.
Use of Hydro formed components

CASE STUDY
March 13 2002

Toyota recalled 273,743 runner SUV's because of

handling problem that makes the vehicle hard to
control if it is overloaded and the driver makes a hard
turn.
September 19, 2002
Honda is recalling 5,57000 cars in Japan for
defective audio equipment that can lead to fire and
flawed engine oil seal that con cause leaks. The
electronic part con heat up excessively and cause the
speaker to catch fire.

THANK YOU
ONE AND ALL