Influence of unloading modes of spring-mass-damper models on vehicle to pole collision simulation results

Abstract

Our intention, in this brief note, is to investigate what influence the viscoelastic models' unloading properties have on models' accuracy of representing vehicle crash event. Two types of simple spring-mass-damper systems (Kelvin models) such underdamped and critically damped conditions are analyzed. Subsequently, two different unloading scenarios are specified: elastic rebound in which only the damper is an energy dissipating element and plastic collision in which the model's maximum achievable displacement is at the same time its constant deflection at the zero-force level. By comparing models' behavior not only in terms of their time responses but also in terms of their force-deflection characteristics, it is concluded which of them is the most suitable to represent vehicle to pole collision.