Reconstruction of a Rollover Ejection Case Using Vehicle Dynamics and Occupant Simulation with Human Body Models

摘要

Accident reconstruction aims to represent thephysics of vehicle driving and impact, as well ashuman driving and impact biomechanics, usingmanageable models with predictive capabilities.While vehicle design is increasingly ComputerAided Engineering (CAE) driven, the advancedmodelling methods developed for CAE are notnecessarily straightforward to employ in accidentreconstruction. CAE models are often dedicated tospecific (laboratory) test conditions for pre-impactdriving or purely for impact, while accidentreconstruction often addresses complex real worldcases requiring integrated simulation of pre-crashand crash events. Furthermore vehicle and restraintmodels developed for design may not be accessibleto accident investigators.This paper addresses the process of building andutilising detailed computer models for accidentreconstruction. Key physical components include:tyre to road or soil interaction, suspension,structural crash, restraints, while the human factorsinclude: driving behaviour, and injurybiomechanics.The reconstruction process is detailed for a rolloverejection case. The reconstruction was conducted intwo separate phases. The first phase was to obtainan accurate motion for the vehicle during the event,using a vehicle dynamics reconstruction simulationthat was correlated to the physical evidence and tyremarkings left at the scene. The second phase was tounderstand the opportunity of ejection using anoccupant kinematics simulation.