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Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC) conducted a comprehensive analysis of data collected during the evaluation of head and neck impact during injurious and non-injurious loading. This evaluation included impact velocity, helmet to roof clearance, and neck angle using a fully instrumented Hybrid III head and neck assembly. The results of this effort were compared against post mortem human subject (PMHS) data from similar testing conducted in conjunction with the Warrior Injury Assessment Manikin (WIAMan) program. The results identified the most severe helmet to roof clearance and neck angles. TARDEC used this knowledge as the foundation for continued research into head and neck impact injury mitigation through the use of passive technology and interior vehicle design.

The objective of this study is to present a quantitative comparison of the biofidelity of the THOR and Hybrid III 50th percentile male ATDs. Quantitative biofidelity was assessed using NHTSA’s Biofidelity Ranking System in a total of 21 test conditions, including impacts to the head, face, neck, upper thorax, lower oblique thorax, upper abdomen, lower abdomen, femur, knee, lower leg, and whole-body sled tests to evaluate upper body kinematics and thoracic response under frontal and frontal oblique restraint loading. Biofidelity Ranking System scores for THOR were better (lower) than Hybrid III in 5 of 7 body regions for internal biofidelity and 6 of 7 body regions for external biofidelity. Nomenclature is presented to categorize the quantitative results, which show overall good internal and external biofidelity of the THOR compared to the good (internal) and marginal (external) biofidelity of the Hybrid III.

Statistical methods, using the entire time-history, can be used to assess the impact response of an ATD (Anthropomorphic Test Device) in terms of its repeatability and reproducibility. In general, the methods generate a correlation relationship described as shape, magnitude and phase-difference between two time-histories’ in a given set of similar tests: for repeatability the relationship it is for the same ATD, for reproducibility it is for different ATDs of the same design and for biofidelity it is a relationship between ATDs and biomechanical response data from a series of human surrogate impact tests. The method uses the phase relationship to minimize the difference between any two time-histories through an alignment procedure and the magnitude and shape correlations are used to generate a parametric evaluation of the differences between any two time-histories, or set of time-histories.

A parametric model obtained by fitting a set of data to a function generally uses a procedure such as maximum likelihood or least squares. In general this will generate the best estimate for the distribution of the data overall but will not necessarily generate a reasonable estimation for the tail of the distribution unless the function fitted resembles the underlying distribution function. A distribution function can represent an estimate that is significantly different from the actual tail data, while the bulk of the data is reasonably represented by the central part of the fitted distribution. Extreme value theory can be used to improve the predictive capabilities of the fitted function in the tail region. In this study the peak-over-threshold approach from the extreme value theory was utilized to show that it is possible to obtain a better fit of the tail of a distribution than the procedures that use the entire distribution only.

This study aims to provide a set of reference post-mortem human subject tests which can be used, with easily reproducible test conditions, for developing and/or validating pedestrian dummies and computational human body models against a road vehicle. An adjustable generic buck was first developed to represent vehicle front-ends. It was composed of four components: two steel cylindrical tubes screwed on rigid supports in V-form represent the bumper and spoiler respectively, a quarter of a steel cylindrical tube represents the bonnet leading edge, and a steel plate represents the bonnet. These components were positioned differently to represent three types of vehicle profile: a sedan, a SUV and a van. Eleven post-mortem human subjects were then impacted laterally in a mid-gait stance by the bucks at 40 km/h: three tests with the sedan, five with the SUV, and three with the van.

This study aimed to clarify the relationship between truck–cyclist collision impact velocity and the serious-injury and fatality risks to cyclists, and to investigate the effects of road type and driving scenario on the frequency of cyclist fatalities due to collisions with vehicles. We used micro and macro truck–cyclist collision data from the Japanese Institute for Traffic Accident Research and Data Analysis (ITARDA) database. We classified vehicle type into five categories: heavy-duty trucks (gross vehicle weight [GVW] ≥11 × 103 kg [11 tons (t)], medium-duty trucks (5 × 103 kg [5 t] ≤ GVW < 11 × 103 kg [11 t]), light-duty trucks (GVW <5 × 103 kg [5 t]), box vans, and sedans. The fatality risk was ≤5% for light-duty trucks, box vans, and sedans at impact velocities ≤40 km/h and for medium-duty trucks at impact velocities ≤30 km/h. The fatality risk was 6% for heavy-duty trucks at impact velocities ≤10 km/h.

As AM technologies are being used with higher frequencywithin the automotive and aerospace industries, the interest in powder characterization and contaminant identification is growing—especially for suppliers looking to gain entry into these highly regulated industries. Standards for powder materials and methods used for aerospace applications are still be developed, and regulatory agencies such as the Federal Aviation Administration have been requesting that standards be developed as guidance for the industry. Methods such as CCSEM and HLS could be viable options for suppliers needing to adhere to a powder specification by demonstrating compliance. Solutions exist to integrate such methods into a production environment as exemplified by RJ Lee Group.

This document establishes the safety requirements applied by the IAASS Space Safety Institute (SSI) for the safety certification of Commercial Human Rated Systems (CHS). This standard covers any human-rated system commercially developed and operated to perform suborbital, orbital, or interplanetary missions, including transport vehicles such as capsules or winged bodies, orbital stations, unmanned cargo transport vehicles intended to dock with crewed stations, bases, descent and ascent vehicles, and integrated systems (e.g., capsule on launcher). NOTE: The mandatory (i.e., shall) requirements in this standard are based on selected best practices from past and present governmental space programs.

Industry standards are key enablers in helping businesses around the meet regulatory requirements, keep costs down, gain market access, and instill consumer confidence. SAE International, a standards development organization (SDO) critical to the transportation industry, works in partnership with industry to develop and distribute standards important in automotive and aerospace product development, product performance, and quality management. Historically, industry standards were formatted with the intention of being distributed in print. This changed with the evolution of new electronic formats, and now most standards are available in PDF or EPUB. While progressive at the time, these formats are now proving inadequate due their optimization for readability by the human eye versus consumption by electronic endpoints.

As the world grapples to combat the spread of COVID-19, our city streets have nearly emptied. Unprecedented community mitigation interventions have been applied in efforts to “flatten the curve” and slow the transmission of the virus. Social distancing measures have dramatically altered our daily behavior; notably, in the ways we do or do not move. This report seeks to identify emerging trends in urban mobility and road safety in respect to COVID-19. This is followed by a discussion of how we could shape our mobility future as communities begin to reopen.

Abstract - IIHS has been conducting side impact crash tests since 2003. To understand how the side crashworthiness program can be enhanced, an ongoing research effort is focused on understanding the correlation between IIHS ratings and driver death rate. In addition, the performance of good-rated late-model vehicles has been assessed in higher severity side crash tests. The purpose of this short communication is to summarize the ongoing work and potential next steps toward developing a new crash test procedure or updating ratings criteria to further advance side crashworthiness.

in vivo

Abstract - Adult and pediatric human body models have focused on developing accurate representation of the human body in terms of anthropometry and kinetics/kinematics in correlation with published PMHS (Post-Mortem Human Subjects) data. This study focuses on comparing the PIPER 6-year-old human body finite element (FE) model with a Q6 FE model to generate comparable metrics. The FE models were simulated in a vehicle environment by positioning them on two different child booster seats with a 3-point lap-shoulder belt for frontal and lateral impacts. The overall kinematic response (head excursion) of the PIPER human body model (HBM) mimics the behavior of the Q6 ATD. However, there is a significant difference in the NIJ values between the PIPER HBM and Q6 ATD (minimum reduction of 67% in PIPER HBM). The head-neck complex of the PIPER is seen to be more flexible (minimum reduction of 12% in neck forces and 64% in neck moments) as compared to the Q6.

Abstract - Shared autonomous vehicles open possibilities for novel seating configurations, enabling greater interior spaciousness by making the front row seats rear-facing or removing one row of seats altogether. Frontal crash simulations with a forward-facing Hybrid III mid-size male FEM demonstrated that the unrestrained legs can swing up freely until they stop at the end of the range of knee extension. High tibia moments and tibia indices result. Similar crash simulations with the GHBMC M50-O demonstrated knee ligament separation, while those with the more advanced GHBMC F05-O did not. To better understand the knee responses, the mass, C.G. and moments of inertia of the GHBMC M50 legs were applied to the GHBMC F05 with its more detailed representation of the knee. The peak knee ligament loads are compared to published failure load data.

in situ

Abstract - Approximately a quarter of automobile accidents in the United States involve multiple impacts, but no standard test methodologies exist for the evaluation of these types of events. In this study, four categories were used for the selection of multiple crash scenarios, resulting in ten representatives of multiple scenarios. NASS-CDS was analyzed to determine the types and percentages of multiple crash accidents. Simulation was conducted with variable such as initial velocity of each vehicle, and items such as overlap and angle between vehicles. And it was used determine the final test conditions. The review of the test results, indicated different vehicle dynamics, vehicle damage and occupant kinematics compared with NCAP test modes. This data can be helpful to understand how the severe accidents are happening and how the occupants move and are injured inside the vehicle in which accidents are occurring in the field.

Abstract - The Warrior Injury Assessment Manikin (WIAMan) was developed to assess injury in Live Fire Test and Evaluation (LFTE) and laboratory development tests of vehicles and vehicle technologies subjected to underbody blast (UBB) loading. While UBB events impart primarily vertical loading, the occupant location in the vehicle relative to the blast can result in some inherent non-vertical, or off-axis loading. In this study, the WIAMan Technology Demonstrator (TD) was subjected to 18 tests with a 350g, 5-ms time duration drop tower pulse using an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) energy attenuating seat in four conditions: purely vertical, 15° forward tilt, 15° rearward tilt, and 15° lateral tilt to simulate the partly off-axis loading of an UBB event. The WIAMan TD showed no signs of damage upon inspection. Time history data indicates the magnitude, curve shape, and timing of the response data were sensitive to the off-axis loading in the lower extremity, pelvis, and spine.

th

Small tactical UAVs (SUAVs) have made their mark in military operations with their ability to gather and provide localized, real-time information. Typical uses include perimeter surveillance of remote military compounds, over-the-horizon surveillance, and remote monitoring of critical logistics routes. However, their potential to take on increased and increasingly complex missions is hampered by their limited endurance. This work explores research done under the auspices of the European Commission’s Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking on a fuel cell and battery hybrid energy storage system that could increase the total amount of onboard energy storage, while continuing to deliver the peak power needs of the SUAV.