Side Impact and Whiplash Testing
THE CHALLENGE
The safety of vehicle occupants plays a crucial role in vehicle development. In addition to frontal impacts (Full Width Frontal and Offset Frontal Impact), international standards and guidelines, along with consumer protection programs established in many countries (such as NCAP) define extended crash tests to safeguard the safety of a vehicle. In these tests, vehicles are evaluated specifically with a view to their resistance to side and pole impacts, as well as the risk of sustaining whiplash injuries during a rear impact, also referred to as Low Speed Rear Impact test.
our Solution
Test procedures that can be carried out on Instron acceleration sled systems include MDB side impact tests, pole side impact tests and whiplash (low speed rear impact) tests. To perform a barrier side impact simulation, a servo-hydraulically actuated extension facility is used, which can handle the "negative" accelerations encountered during side impact tests. In addition, dedicated sled setups are available allowing loads to be introduced into the dummies used in such a way that compliance with specified limits for head, shoulder and thorax protection criteria can be evaluated. The Whiplash test is conducted in low-pressure mode. This mode of operation enables compliance with the stricter pulse corridors of the EuroNCAP specifications. The different test procedures are selected with a simple mouse click. All necessary modifications of the parameters and hydraulic system settings are made fully automatically by the RS CrashSim simulation software.