A methodology to assess frontal stiffness to improve crash compatibility

Improved crash compatibility for vehicles is the next step towards increased frontal impact protection. Two aspects of crash compatibility are frontal stiffness and mass. Currently, frontal stiffness is related to mass and heavier vehicle tend to be stiffer than lighter ones. Consequently, the risk of being over-crushed in frontal impacts increases with mass-ratio. This study investigates one methodology to match frontal stiffness levels for vehicles in frontal impacts with different mass ratios. A generic, full vehicle multi-body model is used, the frontal stiffness properties of which are obtained from one full width crash test and one offset crash test. A small vehicle fleet has been developed using this methodology. The study shows one possibility for developing generic vehicle models that can be used to match frontal stiffness levels for vehicle with different masses.