VALIDATION OF A VIRTUAL MODEL FOR THE KINEMATIC AND DYNAMIC ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF A PEDESTRIAN'S HEAD WITH A BONNET USING EXPERIMENTAL TESTS

Pedestrian safety during vehicle collisions is a critical concern in automobile design. The aim of this study is to validate a virtual model developed for the kinematic and dynamic analysis of the impact of a pedestrian's head on the hood of a vehicle. Using SimscapeMultibody for simulation and detailed CAD components for accurate geometric representation, the virtual model was created to predict the behaviour of the head during an impact. To validate the model, experimental tests were conducted usinga physical pedestrian head model in controlled impact scenarios. Important parameters such as impact velocity, and the resulting accelerations were measured and compared with the simulation results. The validation process showed a high level of correlation between the experimental data and the model's predictions, thereby confirming the reliability of the model. This study establishes the virtual model as a valuable tool for vehicle design and pedestrian safety analysis and offers potential improvements in mitigating pedestrian injuries in collisions.