Analysis of dynamic response of vehicle occupant in frontal crash using multibody dynamics method

Multibody analyses have been applied extensively in biodynamic modeling and in investigations of the dynamic behavior of biosystems. This study employs the multibody dynamics method to explore frontal collision phenomena. Specifically, this study examines the dynamic response of the human body in a crash event and assesses the injuries sustained to the occupant's head, chest and pelvic regions. Kane's method is used to obtain the governing equations describing the response of the occupant. These equations are then coded into a computer program and solved using fourth-order Runge-Kutta methods. The multibody dynamics results are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results presented in a previous study and with the numerical results obtained from LS-DYNA3D software. Furthermore, the current numerical models are capable of predicting the severity of the injuries sustained by the vehicle occupant in an impact. The analysis costs of the multibody dynamics method are very low. Therefore, the multibody dynamics modeling method provides a valuable tool for engineers to study different design concepts and to evaluate the safety of vehicles at an early stage of the research and development process.