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This paper describes the design and implementation of the SEA, Ltd. Brake and Throttle Robot (BTR). Presented are the criteria used in the initial design and the development and testing of the BTR, as well as some test results achieved with the device. The BTR is designed for use in automobiles and light trucks. It is based on a servomotor driven ballscrew, which in turn operates either the brake or accelerator. It is easily portable from one vehicle to another and compact enough to fit even smaller vehicles. The BTR is light enough so as to have minimal effect on the measurement of vehicle parameters. The BTR is designed for use as a stand-alone unit or as part of a larger control system such as the Automated Test Driver (ATD) yet allows for the use of a test driver for safety, as well as test selection, initiation, and monitoring. Installation in a vehicle will be described, as well as electronic components that support the BTR.

Automating road vehicle control can increase the range and reliability of dynamic testing. Some tests, for instance, specify precise steering inputs which human test drivers are only able to approximate, adding uncertainty to the test results. An automated steering system has been developed which is capable of removing these limitations. This system enables any production car or light truck to follow a user-defined path, using global position feedback, or to perform specific steering sequences with excellent repeatability. The system adapts itself to a given vehicle s handling characteristics, and it can be installed and uninstalled quickly without damage or permanent modification to the vehicle.

The Buckeye Bullet set domestic as well as international speed records for electric vehicles in 2004. The next generation of land speed vehicle from Ohio State called the Buckeye Bullet 2 (henceforth the BB2) will again challenge and hopefully achieve several new speed records. The Buckeye Bullet suspension worked relatively well but was found to not be quite optimal for the vehicle. The purpose of the work outlined here was to develop a new front and rear suspension for the BB2 that would be an improvement over the suspension of the original Bullet. Previous to the start of this work part of the suspension had already been designed in the form of an upright/control arm setup. This paper works on taking the suspension to completion from this point of design. Work done includes developing the final design, determining suspension parameters, building an ADAMS model, and testing the ADAMS model.

This paper presents an overview of work performed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) Vehicle Research and Test Center (VRTC) to test, validate, and improve the planned National Advanced Driving Simulator's (NADS) vehicle dynamics simulation. This vehicle dynamics simulation, called NADSdyna, was developed by the University of Iowa's Center for Computer-Aided Design (CCAD) NADSdyna is based upon CCAD's general purpose, real-time, multi-body dynamics software, referred to as the Real-Time Recursive Dynamics (RTRD), supplemented by vehicle dynamics specific submodules VRTC has “beta tested” NADSdyna, making certain that the software both works as computer code and that it correctly models vehicle dynamics. This paper gives an overview of VRTC's beta test work with NADSdyna. The paper explains the methodology used by VRTC to validate NADSdyna.

Adequacy of resistance spot welds in low carbon steels in relation to structural integrity can become an issue in the reconstruction of automotive accidents. Because formation of a plug (or button or slug) in a peel test is used as a quality control criterion for welds, it is sometimes assumed conversely that a weld which failed is defective if no plug is present. Spot welds do not necessarily form a plug when fractured. Fracture behavior of spot welds both by overload and fatigue is reviewed. Then techniques for examination of field failures are discussed. Finally two case histories are discussed.

The objective of this paper is to develop a self-tuning optimal control of an active suspension. An active suspension composed of an identifier and a controller is proposed in this paper. Although control strategies on active (or semi-active) suspensions have been investigated during the past few decades, some problems are not well understood yet. One of them arising from the ride control of an active suspension is that when the weight and the moments of inertia of the sprung mass are varied, the feedback gains of the controller should vary with the variation of parameters accordingly. Therefore, the identifier is proposed before the controller is designed. In the real situations, the parameter variation may occur when loadings on vehicles vary - either from passengers or payloads, especially, in the case of loading on a truck. An identification structure using parallel model reference adaptive system (MRAS) is proposed to identify the true parameters.

Composite material roof structures for multipurpose vehicles are comprised of a composite shell molded without metal frames as in most automobile rooftops. This paper experimentally analyzes the roof structure performance for a static uniformly distributed load over the roof surface and examines the tensile properties, effects of high temperatures and sound absorption characteristics of the random, chopped glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin material. The roof performance includes the load-strain history and the load-deflection behavior of the structure.

Pedestrian vehicle accidents account for a considerable proportion of all automobile related injuries and deaths each year. Due to the large difference in mass between the pedestrian and the vehicle, pedestrian injury reduction is a formidable task. In spite of these difficulties, world attention is beginning to focus on pedestrian injuries and methods to quantitatively evaluate a vehicle for its pedestrian injury potential. This paper reviews the status of work in the United States on devices and methods for measuring pedestrian impact response. Where data is available test device response is summarized. The state of pedestrian accident research is also reviewed in the light of national and International interest in reducing pedestrian injuries.

Seat belt usage in the United States is increasing dramatically, due in part to legislative action. In addition, education programs have improved public awareness of the need for automotive restraints in achieving crash survival and injury reduction. The safety consciousness level of automobile passengers is particularly strong among pregnant women. It is reasonable to expect wider use of seat belts by expectant mothers due to this acute attention to safety. The literature demonstrates that incorrect usage of seat belts is a cause of injury. This can be especially applicable during pregnancy when changes in anatomy dictate a change in belt positioning, Review of the literature shows that the technical issues associated with the use of current production belt restraint systems by pregnant women has not been addressed.

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.