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Technology is ever advancing in the world around us, and it is no different when it comes to data acquisition systems used in accident reconstruction. In 2016, the SAE publication “Data Acquisition Using Smart Phone Applications,” Neale et al. evaluated the accuracy of basic fitness applications in tracking position within the smart phone itself [1]. In 2018, a follow up publication “Mid-Range Data Acquisition Units Using GPS and Accelerometers” tested the Harry’s Lap TimerTM application for use in smart phones and compared the data to the Race Logic VBOX [2]. In this paper, another data acquisition system, the MoTeC C185, was tested. The MoTeC C185 data logger contains an internal 3-axis accelerometer and was also equipped with an external Syvecs 50Hz GPS Module with 6-axis accelerometer. A test vehicle was instrumented with the MoTeC C185, Race Logic VBOX, and Harry’s Lap TimerTM.

There have been several papers published over the past 25 years regarding the acceleration of heavy trucks, including different loading conditions, drivetrain configurations, and driving techniques. The papers provide a large data set that measures the speed, distance, and time of the vehicles during acceleration testing and present the data in tabular or graphical formats. Although the data as presented can be useful, it can be challenging to pore over all the data to determine the correct set for a specific application in accident reconstruction. As of this paper’s date of publication, there are approximately eight relevant papers with a total of 268 acceleration tests performed, spanning many years. This paper reviews all the available published literature and summarizes the relevant data in a comprehensive list of accelerations for different heavy truck configurations, which provides a valuable resource to the accident reconstruction field.

In low speed collisions (under 15 mph) that involve a heavy truck impacting the rear of a passenger vehicle, it is likely that the front bumper of the heavy truck will override the rear bumper beam of the passenger vehicle, creating an override/underride impact configuration. There is limited data available for study when attempting to quantify vehicle damage and crash dynamics in low-speed override/underride impacts. Low speed impact tests were conducted to provide new data for passenger vehicle dynamics and damage assessment for low speed override/underride rear impacts to passenger vehicles. Three tests were conducted, with a tractor-trailer impacting three different passenger vehicles at 5 mph and 10 mph. This paper presents data from these three tests in order to expand the available data set for low speed override/underride collisions.