Citation

Hu H, Lu Z, Wang J, Lu WJ. Int. J. Crashworthiness 2012; 17(2): 153-162.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/13588265.2011.632847

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

A Taiwanese manufacturer of off-road utility vehicles (OUVs) was so concerned by the increased number in U.S. accidents and federal probes, involving OUVs from other manufacturers in the industry that it recently funded a thorough, analytical crashworthiness evaluation of its production vehicle body structure. The approach is to employ a transient dynamic, large-strain, material nonlinear finite-element modelling and analysis using LS-DYNA, with adequate model validation. The current paper, Part I of two, presents two sets of model validation via experimental modal analysis (EMA) and drop impact tests. The transfer of impact kinetic energy to vehicle structure's internal energy results in extreme deformation, and material nonlinearity/plasticity. Model validation is thus a must for accurate simulation. EMA was first conducted to obtain the natural frequencies and the associate mode shapes to validate the distributed stiffness and mass, both of which can significantly influence the sequence of plastic deformation and energy transformation under impact. Secondly, drop impact tests were conducted on a part of body structure to obtain dynamic deformation to validate the strain-rate-dependent coefficients of the material plasticity. Simulation and analysis of impact crashes, using the validated model, are presented in Part II of the paper.