Roof Crash Simulation of Passenger Car for Improving Occupant Safety in Cabin

Abstract

Thousands of people are killed every year in rollovers. The best way to prevent these deaths is to keep vehicles from rolling over in the first place. Electronic stability control is significantly reducing rollovers, especially fatal single-vehicle ones. When vehicles do roll, side curtain airbags help protect people inside, and belt use is essential. However, for these safety technologies to be most effective, the roof must be able to maintain the occupant survival space when it hits the ground during rollover. Stronger roofs crush less, reducing the risk that people will be injured by contact with the roof itself. Stronger roofs also can prevent occupants, especially those who are not using safety belts, from being ejected through windows, windshields or doors that have broken or opened because the roof has deformed. In this paper, the strength of the roof is determined by pushing a metal plate against one side of it at a slow but constant speed. The force applied relative to the vehicle’s weight is known as the strength-to-weight ratio. This ratio varied as the test progressed. The peak strength-to-weight ratio recorded at any time before the roof is crushed 5 inches is the key measurement of roof strength.