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Crash test

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A crash test of theHonda Ridgelineby theNHTSA
Frontal small-overlap crash test of a 2012Honda Odyssey
2018Dodge Grand Caravanbeing struck by a mobile deformable barrier at 62 km/h
2016Honda Fitstriking a wall head-on at 56 km/h
Driver-side oblique crash test of a 2017Honda Ridgeline
Jeep Libertyundergoing routine impact testing at Chrysler's Proving Grounds
NHTSA research crash test involving twoFord Five Hundreds
Full-scale crash test of variousairbagtechnologies on anAH-1G (Mod)helicopter

Acrash testis a form ofdestructive testingusually performed in order to ensure safe design standards incrashworthinessandcrash compatibilityfor various modes of transportation (seeautomobile safety) or related systems and components.

Types

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  • Frontal-impact tests:which is what most people initially think of when asked about a crash test. Vehicles usually impact a solidconcretewall at a specified speed, but these can also be vehicle impacting vehicle tests.SUVshave been singled out in these tests for a while, due to the high ride-height that they often have.
  • Moderate Overlap tests:in which only part of the front of the car impacts with a barrier (vehicle). These are important, as impactforces(approximately) remain the same as with a frontal impact test, but a smaller fraction of the car is required to absorb all of the force. These tests are often realized by cars turning into oncoming traffic. This type of testing is done by the U.S.A.Insurance Institute for Highway Safety(IIHS),Euro NCAP,Australasian New Car Assessment Program(ANCAP) andASEAN NCAP.
  • Small Overlap tests:this is where only a small portion of the car's structure strikes an object such as a pole or a tree, or if a car were to clip another car. This is the most demanding test because it loads the most force onto the structure of the car at any given speed. These are usually conducted at 15–20% of the front vehicle structure.
  • Side-impacttests:these forms of accidents have a very significant likelihood of fatality, as cars do not have a significantcrumple zoneto absorb the impact forces before an occupant is injured.
  • Pole-impact tests:A difficult test which places a large amount of force on a small proportion on the side of the vehicle.
  • Roll-overtests:which tests a car's ability (specifically thepillarsholding the roof) to support itself in a dynamic impact. More recently, dynamic rollover tests have been proposed in lieu of static crush testing (video).[1]
  • Roadside hardware crash tests:are used to ensurecrash barriersand crash cushions will protect vehicle occupants from roadside hazards, and also to ensure that guard rails, sign posts, light poles and similar appurtenances do not pose an undue hazard to vehicle occupants.
  • Old versus new:Often an old and big car against a small and new car,[2][3]or two different generations of the same car model. These tests are performed to show the advancements in crash-worthiness.[citation needed]
  • Computer model:Because of the cost of full-scale crash tests, engineers often run manysimulated crash testsusing computer models to refine their vehicle or barrier designs before conducting live tests.
  • Sled testing:A cost-effective way of testing components such as airbags and seat belts is conducting sled crash testing. The two most common types of sled systems are reverse-firing sleds which are fired from a standstill, and decelerating sleds which are accelerated from a starting point and stopped in the crash area with a hydraulic ram. It can also be used to evaluate thewhiplashprotection of a vehicle'sseat.

Major providers

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Fiat 500 del 2007in Euro NCAP crash test (Torino museum)
Name Abbreviation Founded Location
United States New Car Assessment Program US NCAP (U.S. NCAP) 1978 Washington, DC,USA
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety IIHS 1959, Ratings from 1995 Arlington, VA,USA
Australasian New Car Assessment Program ANCAP 1993 Canberra, Australia
Japan New Car Assessment Programme JNCAP 1995 Tokyo, Japan
European New Car Assessment Programme Euro NCAP 1996 Leuven,Belgium
Korean New Car Assessment Programme KNCAP 1999 Seoul, South Korea
China – New Car Assessment Programme C-NCAP 2006 Tianjin, China
Latin New Car Assessment Programme Latin NCAP 2010 Montevideo, Uruguay
New Car Assessment Program for Southeast Asia ASEAN NCAP 2011 Kajang,Selangor,Malaysia
Global New Car Assessment Programme Global NCAP 2011 London, Great Britain
Taiwan New Car Assessment Program TNCAP 2018, Ratings from 2023 Changhua,Taiwan
Green NCAP(operated byEuro NCAPfor emissions) Green NCAP 2019 Leuven,Belgium
Bharat New Car Assessment Program Bharat NCAP 2023 Pune, India

Data collection

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Crash test graphics
Crash test dummyleft paraplegic after a severe oblique crash test inside a 1997Geo Metro

Crash tests are conducted under rigorousscientificandsafetystandards.Each crash test is very expensive so the maximum amount ofdatamust be extracted from each test. Usually, this requires the use of high-speed data-acquisition, at least onetriaxialaccelerometerand acrash test dummy,but often includes more.

Some organizations that conduct crash tests includeCalspan,an independent test laboratory in Buffalo, NY. As a result of the capabilities and expertise at Calspan, Calspan has been awarded 5 year contracts by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to execute for the NHTSA FMVSS No. 214, Side Impact Protection Compliance Testing, FMVSS No. 301 Fuel System Integrity, and FMVSS No. 305 Electric Powered Vehicles: Electrolyte Spillage and Electrical Shock Protection vehicle crash tests. Calspan also holds the NHTSA contracts for executing New Car Assessment Program crash tests.

Also,Monash Universitydepartment ofCivil Engineering,routinely conducts crash tests for the purposes ofroadside barriersafety and design.

Consumer response

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  • In 1998 theRover 100received a one-star Adult Occupant Rating inEuroNCAPcrash tests; sales promptly collapsed and the 18-year-old design was quickly scrapped.
  • In 2005 theDaewoo Kalosmade news in Europe and Australia by scoring only two stars in its crash test, resulting in lower sales and demonstrating the influence of vehicle crashworthiness on a model's success in themarketplace.The result forHoldenin Australia, who retailed the Kalos under theHolden Barinaname, resulted in a considerable amount of negativepublicity,with the managing director of Holden forced to publicly defend the vehicle.[4]
  • The second generationIsuzu Trooper(1995–1997) models were rated "Not Acceptable" byConsumer Reportsfor their tendency toroll overduring testing. After the report Trooper sales never recovered and two years later production ceased.

Crash testing programs

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There are a number of crash test programs around the world dedicated to providing consumers with a source of comparitative information in relation to the safety performance of new and used vehicles. Examples of new car crash test programs includeNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration's NCAP, theInsurance Institute for Highway Safety,Australasian New Car Assessment Program,EuroNCAPandJapNCAP.Programs such as theUsed Car Safety Ratingsprovide consumers information on the safety performance of vehicles based on real world crash data.

In 2020, EuroNCAP introduces amobile progressive deformable barrier (MPDB) testfirst experimented on the Toyota Yaris.[5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Newly Developed Roof Crush Test Proves Existence of Safer Vehicles that can Withstand Rollover Crashes".The Center for Auto Safety. Archived fromthe originalon 2007-09-27.Retrieved2007-06-07.
  2. ^"Ford Fiesta Vs Ford Sierra".ADAC. Archived fromthe originalon April 19, 2008.
  3. ^Renault Modus Vs Volvo 940.Archived fromthe originalon February 16, 2014.
  4. ^Fallah, Alborz (14 June 2006)."Holden Barina 2006 Poor Safety Slows Sales".CarAdvice.
  5. ^"Euro NCAP | 500 - Server Error".
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