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The WorldSID dummy can be equipped with both a pubic and a sacroiliac joint (S-I joint) loadcell. Although a pubic force criterion and the associated injury risk curve are currently available and used in regulation (ECE95, FMVSS214), as of today injury mechanisms, injury criteria, and injury assessment reference values are not available for the sacroiliac joint itself. The aim of this study was to investigate the sacroiliac joint injury mechanism. Three configurations were identified from full-scale car crashes conducted with the WorldSID 50th percentile male where the force passing through the pubis in all three tests was approximately 1500 N while the sacroiliac Fy / Mx peak values were 4500 N / 50 Nm, 2400 N / 130 Nm, and 5300 N / 150 Nm, respectively. These tests were reproduced using a 150 kg guided probe impacting Post Mortem Human Subjects (PMHS) at 8 m/s, 5.4 m/s and 7.5 m/s.

A new 4.0 liter V8 engine, 1UZ-FE, has been developed for the luxury sedan, LEXUS LS400. The engine has 4 camshafts and 32 valves, and weighs only 195 kg (430 lbs) having many light alloy components and carefully designed configurations. The appropriate engine displacement and high technology adopted throughout from design to manufacturing process enable the LS400 to run powerfully with excellent fuel economy and a pleasant sounds. It develops 250HP at 5600 rpm and 260ft-lbs of torque at 4400 rpm, and its fuel economy figure, well exceeds the EPA's tax charge level of 22.5mpg. These figures have been achieved through the newest technologies applied to every part of the design, such as: Well studied intake and exhaust systems, centrally located spark plug in the TOYOTA original four-valve combustion chamber, which has a narrow valve including angle, and low friction components like aluminum alloy valve lifters and well balanced moving parts.

Many efforts have been made to understand the mechanism of whiplash injury. Recently, the cervical facet joint capsules have been focused on as a potential site of injury. An experimental approach has been taken to analyze the vertebral motion and to estimate joint capsule stretch that was thought to be a potential cause of pain. The purpose of this study is to analyze the kinematics of the cervical facet joint using a human FE model in order to better understand the injury mechanism. The Total Human Model for Safety (THUMS) was used to visually analyze the local and global kinematics of the spine. Soft tissues in the neck were newly modeled and introduced into THUMS for estimating the loading level in rear impacts. The model was first validated against human test data in the literature by comparing vertebrae motion as well as head and neck responses. Joint capsule strain was estimated from a maximum principal strain output from the elements representing the capsule tissues.

This paper analyzed the mechanisms of injury in high speed, right-lateral impacts of stock car auto racing, and interaction of the occupant and the seat system for the purpose of reducing the risk of injury, primarily rib fractures. Many safety improvements have been made to stock car racing recently, including the Head and Neck Support devices (HANS®), the 6-point restraint harnesses, and the implementation of the SAFER Barrier. These improvements have contributed greatly to mitigating injury during the race crash event. However, there is still potential to improve the seat structure and the understanding of the interaction between the driver and the seat in the continuation of making racing safety improvements. This is particularly true in the case of right-lateral impacts where the primary interaction is between the seat supports and the driver and where the chest is the primary region of injury.

Posterior translation of the tibia with respect to the femur can stretch the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). Fifteen millimeters of relative displacement between the femur and tibia is known as the Injury Assessment Reference Value (IARV) for the PCL injury. Since the anterior protuberance of the tibial plateau can be the first site of contact when the knee is flexed, the knee bolster is generally designed with an inclined surface so as not to directly load the projection in frontal crashes. It should be noted, however, that the initial flexion angle of the occupant knee can vary among individuals and the knee flexion angle can change due to the occupant motion. The behavior of the tibial protuberance related to the knee flexion angle has not been described yet. The instantaneous angle of the knee joint at the timing of restraining the knee should be known to manage the geometry and functions of knee restraint devices.

Our two types of NOx storage-reduction (NSR) catalyst have been tested under various conditions of thermal endurance; the performance of these catalysts have been regressed to give the formulas that enable to estimate the performance after thermal endurance; and we have found the method to simplify (shorten the duration of) the thermal endurance tests and that the thermal deterioration of NSR catalysts is controlled by the worst condition of endurance (at least approximately). The regression formula for the amount of potassium that contributes to the catalyst performance (active K) after the endurance has also been obtained. These formulas predict that the amount of active K is the least for the worst condition of endurance and suggest a difference in deterioration mechanism that reflects the performance between low and high temperatures and the portion of worse deterioration (front or rear).

The dissolution and exfoliation of chromium plating specific to Russia was studied. Investigation and analysis of organic compounds in Russian soil revealed contents of highly concentrated fulvic acid. Additionally, it was found that fulvic acid, together with CaCl2 (a deicing agent), causes chromium plating corrosion. The fulvic acid generates a compound that prevents reformation of a passivation film and deteriorates the sacrificial corrosion effectiveness of nickel.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the piston skirt friction reduction effect of a diamond-like carbon (DLC)-coated wrist pin. The floating liner method and elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) simulation were used to analyze piston skirt friction. The experimental results showed that a DLC-coated wrist pin reduced cylinder liner friction, and that this reduction was particularly large at low engine speeds and large pin offset conditions. Friction was particularly reduced at around the top and bottom dead center positions (TDC and BDC). EHL simulation confirmed that a DLC-coated wrist pin affects the piston motion and reduces the contact pressure between the piston skirt and cylinder liner.

By using analytical techniques (FT-IR, TG-MS, ICP) and DFT calculations, the potassium (K) used as a storage component in NOx Catalysts can be analyzed. The results from this study show that the, K exists as K2CO3, and that the amount, molecular structure, and thermal stability of K2CO3 are different, depending on the support material (ZrO2, Al2O3, or TiO2). If the amount of K that interacts with the support to form an inactive complex oxide is decreased, the amount of K2CO3 and NOx storage is increased. The amount of the inactive K varies with the basicity of the supports. K2CO3 that exists in unstable structures on the supports can be easy to react with NOx to form the nitrate. So, the higher the quantity of unstable K2CO3, the higher the NOx storage capacity. Based on these results, a development guideline was proposed to improve the NOx storage performance.

The most severe ankle skeletal injury called pilon fractures can cause long term disability and impairment. Based on previous experimental studies, the pilon fractures are regarded as caused by a high-energy compressive force in the ankle joint and affected by a muscular tension force generated by emergency braking. However, quantitative injury criteria for the pilon fractures are still unknown. More accurate prediction of bone fractures in the distal tibia using a FE model of human lower leg can help us know the quantitative injury criteria. Therefore we newly proposed an anisotropic inelastic constitutive model of cortical bone including damage evolution and then implemented it to a FE code, LS-DYNA. The proposed model successfully reproduced most of anisotropy, strain rate dependency, and asymmetry of tension and compression on material and failure properties of human femoral cortical bone.

The anti-shudder effect of ATF additives and their mechanisms have been investigated. Anti-shudder durability was evaluated using an automatic transmission (AT) on an engine stand under continuously slip-controlled condition. The addition of over-based Ca-sulfonate and friction modifier (FM) remarkably improved the anti-shudder durability of ATF. The surface roughness of the contact area (contact area roughness) of the clutch plates was measured by an electron probe surface roughness analyzer. To evaluate the boundary frictional properties of the adsorbed film formed, the friction coefficient of the clutch plates in the absence of oil was examined after the anti-shudder durability test. It was found that shudder occurrence was strongly correlated with the contact area roughness and the boundary frictional property of the steel plate surface. Large contact area roughness and low boundary friction were preferred to prevent shudder.

Currently, to achieve the desired design in automotive paint, absorption pigments, such as organic pigments, are used in combination with brilliant pigments (ex. aluminum or mica etc.). However, many beautiful colors exist in the world, especially in the natural world. Until now, automotive paints have not been able to replicate those colors. In this project, by first analyzing the coloring principles of the natural world, we have focused on the development of a previously non-existent coloring technology (structural color). By combining this with nanostructure control technology, we have established a radically new coloring process enabling the design of hues, chromaticity and reflection intensity. This technology has tangible results, as new pigments are available for paint formulations.

Since 1992, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) has been working on the development of fuel cell system technology. TMC is designing principal components in-house, including fuel cell stacks, high-pressure hydrogen storage tank systems, and hybrid systems. TMC developed the '02 model TOYOTA FCHV, the world-first market-ready fuel cell vehicle, and started limited lease of the vehicles in 2002. In 2005, TMC developed a new model of TOYOTA FCHV which obtained vehicle type certification in Japan, and is currently available for leasing. TMC has improved the cruising range and cold start/drive capability of the TOYOTA FCHV, and conducted public road tests to evaluate the performance. The improved TOYOTA FCHV successfully traveled from Osaka to Tokyo (approximately 560km, 350 miles) on a single fueling of hydrogen. In addition, the cold weather tests carried out in Hokkaido and North America have verified its starting/driving capability at subfreezing temperatures including -37°C.

In Toyota’s 2nd generation FCV, an electric turbo-type air compressor has been adopted for downsizing and cost reduction. Automotive Fuel Cell applications present several challenges for implementing a turbo-type air compressor. When operating a fuel cell in high-temperature or high-altitude locations, the FC stack must be pressurized to prevent dry-up. The flow rate vs pressure conditions that the FC must pass through or in some cases operate at are typically within the surge region of a turbo-type air compressor. Additionally, Toyota requires quick air transient response (< 1 sec) for power generation, energy management, and FC dry-up prevention. If the turbo-type air compressor is not precisely controlled during quick transients, it can easily enter the surge region.

Technological development of materials derived from plants (e.g., polylactic acid (PLA), and the like) is required to break dependence on fossil fuels and reduce CO2. PLA has inferior hydrolysis resistance, impact resistance, and molding ability than polypropylene (PP), and in order to overcome these disadvantages, a novel PP/PLA alloy has been conceived where PLA is incorporated into a PP matrix. By optimizing compatibilizer and elastomer addition, PLA has been successfully dispersed into a PP matrix at a sub-micron order, and interior parts have been successfully developed that fulfill the performance, appearance, and mass-production capability requirements for practical application.

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) has been developing fuel cell (FC) technology since 1992, and finally “MIRAI” was launched in 15th Dec. 2014. An important step was achieved with the release of the “FCHV-adv” in 2008. It established major improvements in efficiency, driving range, durability, and cold start capability. However, enhancing performance and further reductions in size and cost are required to facilitate the commercial widespread adoption of fuel cell vehicles (FCVs). TMC met these challenges by developing the world's first FC stack without a humidifying system. This was achieved by the development of an innovative cell flow field structure and membrane electrode assembly (MEA), enabling a compact and high-performance FC stack. Other cost reduction measures incorporated by the FC stack include reducing the amount of platinum in the catalyst by two-thirds and adopting a carbon nano-coating for the separator surface treatment.

Cold weather operation has been a major issue for fuel cell vehicles (FCV). In order to counteract this effect on FCV operation, an approach for rapid warm-up operation based on : concentration overvoltage increase and conversion efficiency decrease by limiting oxygen or hydrogen supply, was adopted in a running fuel cell hybrid vehicle. In order to adjust the output power response of the fuel cell to the target power of the vehicle, -the inherent capacitance characteristics of the fuel cell were measured- based on the oxidation-reduction reaction and an electric double-layer capacitor, and an equivalent electric circuit model of a fuel cell with the capacitance was constructed. This equivalent electric circuit model was used to develop a power control algorithm to manage absorption of the surplus power, or deviation, to the capacitance.

Various issues must be resolved before sustainable mobility can be achieved, the most important of which are reacting to energy supply and demand, and lowering CO2 emissions. At present, the fact that the vast majority of vehicles run on conventional oil is regarded as a problem for which Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is developing various technological solutions. Fuel cell (FC) technology is one of the most promising of these solutions. A fuel cell is an extremely clean device that uses hydrogen and oxygen to generate power without emitting substances like CO2, NOx, or PM during operation. Its energy efficiency is high and it is widely expected to form the basis of the next generation of powertrains. Since 1992, TMC has been working to develop the main components of fuel cell vehicles, including the fuel cell itself, and the high pressure hydrogen tank and hybrid systems.

The fuel cell (FC) stack that was developed for a new FCV achieves a power density of 3.1 kW/L (one of the highest in the world) by the use of an innovative cell flow field structure, electrodes, and a simplified stack tightening structure. These innovations allow the FC stack to be installed under the floor of a sedan-type fuel cell vehicle (FCV). Underfloor installation also required excellent impact resistance, waterproofing, and rustproofing performance. These items were quantified and analyzed during the development of the FC stack, resulting in an optimized structure capable of enduring a wide range of possible underfloor inputs.

In order to improve air quality and to reduce urban noise, Toyota Motor Corporation has developed a fuel cell hybrid bus, FCHV-BUS2, in cooperation with HINO Motors, Ltd. The FCHV-BUS2 is based on a HINO low floor city bus model, and powered by a hydrogen fuel cell hybrid system. Hydrogen is stored in high pressure tanks on the bus roof. Based on the Toyota fuel cell hybrid technology for passenger cars, this fuel cell hybrid bus is equipped with two fuel cell stacks, two traction motors and four secondary batteries, making its vehicle efficiency approximately 1.7 times better than the diesel engine powered bus. The vehicle efficiency is boosted by charging the secondary batteries with regenerated energy while deceleration and by stopping the fuel cell stack(s) power generation during low fuel cell power modes.