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This paper describes the development and experimental validation of a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) dynamic simulator that enables development, testing, and calibration of a traction control strategy. EcoCAR 2 is a three-year competition between fifteen North American universities, sponsored by the Department of Energy and General Motors that challenges students to redesign a Chevrolet Malibu to have increased fuel economy and decreased emissions while maintaining safety, performance, and consumer acceptability. The dynamic model is developed specifically for the Ohio State University EcoCAR 2 Team vehicle with a series-parallel PHEV architecture. This architecture features, in the front of the vehicle, an ICE separated from an automated manual transmission with a clutch as well as an electric machine coupled via a belt directly to the input of the transmission. The rear powertrain features another electric machine coupled to a fixed ratio gearbox connected to the wheels.

Assuming rigid body motion, recorded acceleration and recorded roll rates at the center of gravity, equations are used to calculate the local three-dimensional accelerations at hypothetical seating positions' Emergency Locking [seat belt] Retractors (ELR) during a steer induced rollover crash. For a threshold of 0.7 g, results demonstrated that intervals in the vehicle's response that may cause the ELR's inertial sensor to move into a neutral zone were limited to localized high magnitude negative vertical acceleration events during the rollover segment with a median duration of 4 ms, average duration of 4.8 ms and a maximum calculated duration of 31.7 ms. Changing the threshold to 0.35 g reduced the interval count by 70 percent and maximum duration by approximately 50 percent.

Objectives. Examination of head injuries in the Pedestrian Crash Data Study (PCDS) indicates that many pedestrian head injuries are induced by a combination of head translation and rotation. The Simulated Injury Monitor (SIMon) is a computer algorithm that calculates both translational and rotational motion parameters relatable head injury. The objective of this study is to examine how effectively HIC and three SIMon correlates predict the presence of either their associated head injury or any serious head injury in pedestrian collisions. Methods. Ten reconstructions of actual pedestrian crashes documented by the PCDS were conducted using a combination of MADYMO simulations and experimental headform impacts. Linear accelerations of the head corresponding to a nine-accelerometer array were calculated within the MADYMO model's head simulation.

Liver trauma research suggests that rapidly increasing internal pressure plays a role in liver injury. Previous work has shown a correlation between pressure and liver injury in pressurized ex vivo human livers when subjected to blunt impacts. The purpose of this study was to extend the investigation of this relationship between pressure and liver injury by testing full-body post-mortem human surrogates (PMHS). Pressure-related variables were compared with one another and also to previously proposed biomechanical predictors of abdominal injury. Ten PMHS were tested. The abdominal vessels were pressurized to physiological levels using saline, and a pneumatic ram impacted the right side of the specimen ribcage at a nominal velocity of 7.0 m/s. Specimens were subjected to either lateral (n = 5) or oblique (n = 5) impacts, and the impact-induced pressures were measured by transducers inserted into the hepatic veins and inferior vena cava.

Current emission control systems utilize a catalytic converter employing a three-way catalyst (TWC), composed of a mixture of noble metals to minimize the three main pollutant classes of NOx, CO, and HC. The TWC is most efficient when the air-to-fuel ratio (A/F) is at stoichiometry (i.e. A/F ≈ 14.7). The stoichiometric set-point region is maintained by the use of oxygen sensors composed of the solid-electrolyte yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) in an electronic feedback loop. As combustion gets leaner a different exhaust sensor can be utilized to give a measure of the level of pollutants. A NOx sensor is an alternative for an oxygen sensor that can be used for feedback control of engine combustion or exhaust NOx traps. A solid electrolyte disk composed of YSZ having two Pt electrodes with one being covered by a microporous zeolite material was tested as a sensor for combustion produced gases such as NO and NO2 in the presence of O2.

This study involves two areas of research. The first is the finalization of the Pedestrian Crash Data Study (PCDS) in order to provide detailed information regarding the vehicle/pedestrian accident environment and how it has changed from the interim PCDS information. The pedestrian kinematics, injury contact sources, and injuries were analyzed relative to vehicle geometry. The second area presented is full-scale attempts at reconstruction of two selected PCDS cases using the Polar II pedestrian dummy to determine if the pre-crash motion of the pedestrian and vehicle could somehow be linked to the injuries and vehicle damage documented in the case.

The advent of the Hybrid III crash test dummy marked the beginning of biofidelic anthropomorphic test devices. During the development of its critical components, notably the head, neck, knee, and thorax, biomechanical cadaver test results were incorporated into the design. The result was a dummy that represented the 50th percentile male during idealized impacts. In order to achieve a more biofidelic response from the components, many exotic materials and unique designs were utilized. The thorax, for instance, incorporates a spring steel rib design laminated with a viscoelastic polymeric composite material to damp the response. This combination results in the proper hysteretic losses necessary to model the human thorax under impact loading conditions. The disadvantage of this design is that the damping material properties are highly sensitive to temperature. A variation of more than 5 degrees Fahrenheit dramatically affects the response of the thorax.

A computer simulation has been developed that models conventional, electric, and hybrid drivetrains. The vehicle's performance is predicted for a given driving cycle, such as the Federal Urban Driving Schedule (FUDS). This computer simulation was used in a massive designspace exploration to simulate 1.8 million different vehicles, including conventional, electric, and hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs). This paper gives a description of the vehicle simulator as well as the results and implications of the large design-space exploration.

This paper describes the background and development of a program focused on motorsports engineering education currently in progress at the Ohio State University (OSU). An interdisciplinary curriculum, with the involvement of various engineering departments, is being proposed for development in an attempt to address some of the engineering education needs of the motorsports industry. The program described in this paper strives to provide engineering students with an interdisciplinary background race engineering, and also provides opportunities for motorsports oriented thesis projects. The paper briefly summarizes the key elements of the curriculum, and describes how the integration of course material from different disciplines with team work on student competition projects, possibly coupled with internships with racing teams, can provide an ideal setting for the education of a new generation of race engineers.

The aim of this paper is to document a three year process of product development of the Formula Lightningtm electric race car constructed at the Ohio State University. Today interest in electric vehicles (EV's) is growing, due to the technological advances in recent years, but also in part due to recent legislation which mandates the introduction of ‘zero emission vehicles’ in California before the end of the century. The definition of ‘zero emission vehicle’ is: a vehicle which does not emit any pollutants during operation. Technologically, the only near term vehicle which meets this definition is an EV. One of the most difficult problems of electric racing is that the usable energy in a given set of batteries is not as easily determined as the amount of fuel in a tank. Also, the motor controllers may limit power output as battery voltage drops, further decreasing the amount of usable energy in a battery set.

This study is concerned with the development of a radar reflective patch to be used with a look-ahead radar in a convoying application for ground vehicles. The system considers a vehicle following configuration where the leader vehicle has a radar patch attached to its rear and the follower vehicle has a radar transmitter/receiver which obtains headway and orientation information by tracking the radar patch. The headway and orientation information is then conveyed to an onboard controller for automatic speed and steering control of the follower. The study has a number of different aspects including development of a frequency selective surface for the patch development of the radar system for determination of spacing and orientation analysis and development of the control system for speed and steering control in a vehicle following configuration.

We consider a vehicle-roadway system where the control of vehicle movement is based on the instrumentation located both in the vehicle and the roadway. In addition to the sensors which are used for obtaining the information on the vehicle, a radar based sensor system is used for providing information on the position of the car relative to a vehicle ahead, and with respect to a reflective strip placed on the road. The roadway traffic includes standard vehicles with no automatic control as well as the vehicles with automatic control units. Communication between the vehicles is not considered. For longitudinal control, we consider an Radar Based Cruise Control problem where the main goal is to maintain a desired speed set by the driver. At the same time, the controller will decelerate the vehicle if the distance and/or the relative speed between the controlled vehicle and the vehicles traveling in front are below certain limits.

For some vehicle dynamics applications, an estimate of a vehicle's center of gravity (cg) height and mass moments of inertia can suffice. For other applications, such as vehicle models and simulations used for vehicle development, these values should be as accurate as possible. This paper presents several topics related to inertial parameter estimation and measurement. The first is a simple but reliable method of estimating vehicle mass moment of inertia values from data such as the center of gravity height, roof height, track width, and other easily measurable values of any light road vehicle. The second is an error analysis showing the effect, during a simple static cg height test, of vehicle motion (relative to the support system) on the vehicle's calculated cg height. A method of accounting for this motion is presented. Similarly, the effects of vehicle motion are analyzed for subsequent mass moment of inertia tests.

Ensuring the reliable operation of the emissions control system is a critical factor in complying with increasingly stringent exhaust emissions standards. In spite of significant advances, the performance of available diagnostic and test equipment is still amenable to further improvement, especially as it pertains to the diagnosis of incipient and intermittent faults. This paper presents experimental results pertaining to the diagnosis of complete, partial and intermittent faults in various components of the engine emissions control system. The instrumentation used in the study permitted simultaneous and essentially continuous analysis of the exhaust gases and of engine variables. Tests were conducted using a section of the EPA urban driving cycle (I/M 240), simulated by means of a throttle/dynamometer controller.

Predominant failure modes in the forming of sheet metal parts are wrinkling and tearing. Wrinkling may occur at the flange as well as in other areas of the drawn part and is generated by excessive compressive stresses that cause the sheet to buckle locally. Fracture occurs in a drawn material which is under excessive tensile stresses. For a given part and blank geometries, the major factors affecting the occurrence of defects in sheet metal parts are the blank holder force (BHF) and the blank holder pressure (BHP). These variables can be controlled to delay or completely eliminate wrinkling and fracture. Modern mechanical presses are equipped with hydraulic cushions and various advanced multi-point pressure control systems. Thus, the BHP can be adjusted over the periphery of the blank holder as a function of location and time (or press stroke).

Postcrash fires are a frequent cause of death in otherwise survivable automobile and aircraft accidents. The idea of the ICED (Internal Circuit Emergency Disconnect) battery [1] is to eliminate electrically ignited postcrash fires by means of an inertial interrupt device that will disconnect the active circuit at the battery if an accident should happen. The design of the prototypes that were tested and the analysis of the disengagement performance will be discussed. A ballistic pendulum impact test rig was designed and used to test the prototypes. The test results and analytical values were shown to be satisfactorily close to each other.

A new technique for measuring the friction coefficient between the punch and workpiece during sheet forming operations has been developed at the Ohio State University. Various materials, such as interstitial-free (IF) steel, high strength (HS) steel, an aluminum alloy (2008T4) and 70/30 brass, were tested under dry and oil lubrication conditions at different punch rates and process conditions. The results show that punch friction depends on the angle of wrap, which varies with punch stroke, and on the strain rate, which depends on punch velocity. The O.S.U. Friction Test is described and typical results are presented which verify the usefulness of the new procedure.

The objective of this paper is to investigate the effect of padding on the human thorax. Different types of padding are used in the computer simulations. Lumped models are developed to perform the simulations. Through the responses of the simulations one can determine what kind of padding is desired. This paper provides the first phase of using a computer-aided tool. Though much attention has been paid to either the investigation of padding or human thorax modelling, how the physical properties of padding affect thoracic protection is not well known. The combination of padding and the thorax needs a lot of effort to unveil their relationship. This paper attempts to provide the guideline of what a good padding material should be. The determination of an optimal padding is one of the goals in this study. Hopefully, the results of this paper can make a contribution to the vehicle safety design, especially the car door.

This paper presents an overview of the evolution of computer simulations in vehicle collision and occupant kinematic reconstructions. The basic principles behind these simulations, the origin of these programs and the evolution of these programs from a basic analytical mathematical model to a sophisticated computer program are discussed. In addition, a brief computer development history is discussed to demonstrate how the evolution of computer assisted vehicle accident reconstruction becomes feasible for a reconstructionist. Possible future research in computer reconstruction is also discussed.