Title: Design of a half cut side member structure for optimal car crash energy absorption characteristics

Authors: Qiong Wu; Xilu Zhao; Ichiro Hagiwara

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Saitama Institute of Technology, 1690 Fusaiji, Fukaya, Saitama, Japan ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Saitama Institute of Technology, 1690 Fusaiji, Fukaya, Saitama, Japan ' Meiji Institute for Advanced Study of Mathematical Sciences, Meiji University, 4-21-1, Nakano, Tokyo, Japan

Abstract: The front side members of a car play a vital role in energy absorption for improved occupant safety during a crash. The response of side members with a half cut structure was examined with a parameter study. The structural design variables were the number of edges of the polygonal cross section, the spot welding spacing, and the thickness of the thin-walled side member structure. An optimal design method for the half cut side member was developed to maximise the absorbed energy by applying a response surface optimisation method. An objective function was used to maximise the energy absorbed by the side member structure. The mass of the optimal side member was constrained to be less than an allowed value.

Keywords: optimum design; impact strength; automobile; analytical model; structural analysis.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVP.2018.095780

International Journal of Vehicle Performance, 2018 Vol.4 No.4, pp.416 - 431

Received: 09 Aug 2017
Accepted: 27 Oct 2017
Published online: 22 Oct 2018 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article