Citation

Sassi A. Int. J. Crashworthiness 2014; 19(1): 13-26.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/13588265.2013.825367

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The aim of the present work is to demonstrate the importance of the energy absorption during the impact of a vehicle with a guardrail system. Six collapsible blockout designs, which consist of a longitudinal box member that offers higher degree of energy absorption per unit mass and a stable folding pattern during the impact are evaluated and compared to the traditional design. A finite element model, consisting of a rigid impactor head travelling with an initial velocity and striking the post at a certain height, was developed and calibrated to dynamic test. The findings of this study highlight the importance of energy absorption of the blockout to reduce the impactor load transferred to the post and to improve the post response during a lateral dynamic impact.