Comparison of Damper-Mass System with Spring-Mass System in Vehicle Crash Worthiness Design

Abstract

Spring-mass systems are commonly used in the design of vehicles considering crash worthiness for occupant protection. On the other hand, if the crash is considered as the absorption of the vehicle’s kinetic energy in the crushable zone, it can be regarded as a damper-mass system. In this paper, an impact model using damper-mass system is compared with a spring-mass system, assuming a situation where the front frame of the vehicle is crushed by the impact. As a result, it can be said that it is reasonable to use the damper mass system as an impact model.