GUARDRAIL VEHICLE SAFETY SYSTEM FOR DISSIPATING ENERGY BY FLATTENING A W-BEAM THROUGH A NAROWING CHANNEL

摘要

589467 An end treatment (110) of a guardrail safety system is disclosed. The end treatment comprises a terminal portion of a guardrail W-beam (102) which slopes from a first vertical height for redirecting an errant vehicle to a second vertical height proximate the surface of the ground. The upstream end (118) comprises a flattened W-beam portion secured proximate the ground. A flattening portion (112) forms a channel with a larger vertical dimension at the downstream end (116) than the upstream end (118). The terminal portion of the guardrail beam (102) is disposed through the channel (112). An impact plate (114) is coupled to the flattening portion (112) for engaging an impacting vehicle. The impact plate (114) and the flattening portion (112) are advanced along the guardrail beam (102) by a vehicle during an end-on impact dissipating energy to decelerate the vehicle and flattening the guardrail beam.