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With the implementation of air bags into today's vehicles, the functional requirements of the instrument panel have changed significantly. Screening of different candidate systems is difficult due to the expense and time involved in testing to the FMVSS requirements. Plastic material properties also vary with temperature and strain rate which increases the complexity of the testing required. It is the objective of this paper to investigate the response of PC/ABS blends to this environment. Also, a summary of mathematically modeling plastic materials with commercial software in energy management environments is presented. This paper will discuss the results of testing PC/ABS blends at strain rates and temperatures typical to that of impact conditions and correlation of these tests to different material models used in finite element codes.

The advent of airbags in passenger vehicles has resulted in the need for instrument panel components which are capable of handling high rate, high load impact in order to control kinematics of the occupant and air bags. This paper summarizes information from the development of thermoplastic structures to be utilized in impact areas of instrument panels. It discusses design, molding, and analysis considerations along with presentation of data obtained from testing injection molded parts.

The functional performance of the instrument panel has been changing dramatically since the late 80s, with FMVSS 208 legislation and its related impact on the addition of air bags and knee bolsters. In addition to addressing occupant safety legislation through more safety components, as well as navigation, security, comfort, informational and other systems are being added to the instrument panel as the consumers' desire for enhanced features continues. At the same time, consumers still want a product that is uncomplicated, affordable, aesthetically pleasing and - at the same time - doesn't limit valuable interior compartment space. The early efficient integration of these components (electrical, architecture, HVAC, steering) in the design, engineering and assembly process will be the areas of requirement that will have a primary effect on IP system cost in the future.