The dynamics of a car crash are intense, abrupt, and brief. It is difficult to impossible to track them with the human eye or to intuitively understand how the forces created will be felt on the body.
True, anthropomorphic test devices (ATDs), otherwise known as crash test dummies, contribute much to understanding this area. Increased data-gathering techniques, from video to sensors, also shed light on the situation.
Too many vehicle manufacturers are missing key data points. That does not mean your standard testing protocol is inefficient or needs replacement; it only means that the safest possible designs result from extra layers of data gathering.
How do you get that extra data? That is the subject of today's post. We will discuss the importance of comprehensive crash testing, the most important data types to collect, and how to know if you are missing vital information. Lastly, we will briefly overview how to get additional data from a truly comprehensive high-speed crash test system.
Whether you manage design projects, set priorities for product safety testing, take responsibility for new releases, or craft reports, you need the best possible test equipment.
Many things can go wrong in a vehicle during an impact scenario. The silver lining is that this also gives designers many opportunities to address potentially harmful or fatal outcomes through the design of belts, supportive surfaces, and airbags. Of course, you cannot know if they work unless you evaluate them thoroughly.
At the end of the day, any test's goal is to save lives. But that does not mean there are not other goals when testing. You want to advance your product, improve your brand recognition, protect your good name, attract the best people to your company, and maximize your crash test safety ratings.
As such, you must go into any test with the best complement of tools possible. Sadly, too many engineers are working with systems that are either inadequate or that, more often, do not provide the desired depth of data. This can lead to inconsistent results and a short obsolescence time. It can also mean additional expensive testing to ensure you have enough data to make the call on a design.
Downstream effects include high upfront investments for new equipment and the annoyance of adding new systems whenever you need to identify another detail. There is a solution, though, which we will discuss below. Before we do, let us address another question: Is your data slipping through the cracks?
This was the reason for updates to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) crash test protocol to include new measurement technology; you need all the information you can get in every test. The most recent update, for example, concerns the placement of belt position. Unfortunately, incomplete or surface-level data from even one element can cause you to miss crucial details.
Of course, your average automotive test engineer already has a standing protocol for every safety element. However, you may miss information if your crash test dummy sensors are not fine-tuned enough, are not densely packed on the surface to provide a comprehensive system, or are not transmitting at a high enough frame rate.
Potentially life-saving information.
Naturally, that will not do. It is time for a comprehensive testing system. When overlaid on your current protocols, it will fill those gaps and plug those cracks, so you can rest easy knowing you are seeing every detail.
What, then, does such a comprehensive system look like? We are glad you asked.
A high-speed impact system that deepens your data view and helps you truly understand impact data from surfaces, active restraints, and passive restraints during crash tests should include several features:
Many systems offer some of these characteristics; few offer them all. An extra layer of information could help you truly understand what happens during and after a crash.
XSENSOR's Intelligent Dynamic Sensing technology fills the chinks in your current system, providing the most robust and reliable data-gathering strategies on the market today. Our vehicle safety and impact testing solutions allow you to optimize the performance of your vehicles and upgrade the quality of your existing protocols.
Contact us today to learn more about how XSENSOR can help reveal the hidden data you need to create the best, safest vehicles on the market.