Corrugated Tube Inversion for Energy Absorption

Thin-walled tubes subjected to axial crushing have been extensively used as energy absorbers in transportation system. It has been known for some time that inversion of a circular tube can have very high energy absorption capability and a stable reaction force. However, its inversing mechanism is rather unstable, and it requires a lubricated contact surface, both of which largely hinder its wide application. This paper proposes to use corrugated tube for inversion, which provides a stable inversing mechanism and no requirement for lubricated contact. Furthermore to the improvement of inversing stability, a comparison between inversion of corrugated tube and buckling of circular tube has been done. It shows that the inversion of the corrugated tube has longer stroke, higher energy absorption capability and better load uniformity than that of buckling of circular tube.Copyright © 2015 by ASME