Cade J. Koschnik, Md Rasedul Islam

Abstract: There are thousands of automobile accidents each day, with none being exactly alike. Everyone is familiar with the crash tests automobile manufacturers perform to see how their vehicles will behave in the event of a crash, but it is impossible for an automobile manufacturer to test and analyze each type of accident that occurs on roadways today. Oftentimes, only a few tests are run, each having a different impact point on the vehicle (front, rear, or sides). This gives a vague idea of what to expect during a crash but cannot provide a proper analysis for every scenario. In the analysis presented within this paper, the temperatures are assumed to be below freezing, with snow on the road, replicating a crash that occurs quite often in the northern parts of the United States. By considering the reduced friction factor due to frozen roads, the properties of the materials of the vehicle at sub-freezing temperatures, as well as the behavior of the vehicle after the crash; this scenario is unique and is rarely, if not ever tested by auto manufacturers. This research provides strong evidence and gives a depiction of how vehicles behave in a head on collision in Winter driving conditions. During this simulation, the mass of the front crash bar had a maximum displacement of 0.34 meters, while the mass of the engine components only moved 0.11 meters. The fact that the front crash bar moved 0.34 meters towards the engine shows that the frontal engine components would have sustained damage during this crash because the crash bar and the engine are initially less than 0.25 meters apart. There were also substantial forces seen within the springs and damper, with a maximum value of approximately 59 kN being found in the spring representing the crash bar.

Keywords: Automobile Accident, Dynamic analysis, Winter, Simulation.

Date Published: September 30, 2024
DOI: 10.11159/jmids.2024.009

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