Crash Energy-Absorption Structure

Design Based on an Innovated

Leightweight Technology

Weizhao Gao, Yiwen Li, Xuewu Zhu, Zhou Yao and Ledan Liu

1 Introduction

During vehicle design process, lightweight is always viewed as an efficient way to

cut off energy consume and gas emission. Besides, lightweight could either bring
great contribution to the performance of vehicle in crashing safety, ride comfort,
NVH property etc., while among them, the crashworthiness-based lightweight
process had attracted relative more attention [1, 2]. Theoretically, the vehicle crash
safety behavior can be promoted from two directions. One is to enhance the
material strength to promote the stiffness of the vehicle’s living cab [3, 4], while the
other is to lower the sum of crash energy by weight reduction [5]. Since the material
substitution may sometimes increase the research and develop cost and lower the
profits, lightweight is relatively more attractive to most vehicle design engineers.
Aiming at promoting the lightweight technology into a higher level, a number of
experts have invested great efforts to develop efficient lightweight methods in the
passed two decades. As seen from the ever-published literature, it indicates that
lightweight methods can be mainly classified into three aspects, those are to
introduce lighter materials like aluminum alloy, magnesium alloy, plastic, and
composite materials [6, 7], to use newly originated manufacturing process like
TWB and TRB [8, 9], and to carry out structure optimization by topology or
numerical optimization technology [10]. All in all, the abovementioned ways are
merely limited the lightweight process into the macro-view, that means the optimal
structures have no essential differences by comparison of the traditional ones.
Actually, the lightweight could either be achieved through microstructural design

W. Gao (&)
Y. Li
X. Zhu
Z. Yao
L. Liu

China FAW Co., Ltd. R&D Center, Changchun 130000, China
e-mail: gaoweizhao@rdc.faw.com.cn

© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2019 35

Society of Automotive Engineers of China (SAE-China) (ed.), Proceedings of the 19th Asia
Pacific Automotive Engineering Conference & SAE-China Congress 2017: Selected Papers,
Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering 486, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8506-2_3
36 W. Gao et al.

[11–13]. By carefully combining a number of microelements into a

macro-component, the lightweight target can be controlled to a more accurate level
and may sometimes generate a relative lighter task.
In this paper, an innovated lightweight technology based on the negative
Poisson’s ratio structure and space truss composite material is discussed. A new
type of crash box and bumper assembly is designed and trial-manufactured under
the crashworthiness targets. The objective is to investigate the application feasibility
of this new lightweight technology and provide a new vision for the lightweight
design of car body.

2 Theory and Methodology

It is widely acknowledged that the well-designed crash box and bumper assembly
(Fig. 1), which serves as a significant energy-absorbing component, may greatly
reduce passengers’ injuries when vehicle crash accidents happen [14, 15].
Considering the crash box, since its primary function is energy absorption, the
higher energy absorption capability along with lower breaking crash force behavior
was always treated as the key characteristic of a better design. While for the frontal
crash bumper, its key function in the crashing process is to maintain the lateral
stability. Therefore, the bending stiffness of the bumper attracts relative more
attention than the energy absorption. Therefore, the lightweight design of crash box
and bumper should be treated differently when searching for the optimal task.

2.1 The Negative Poisson’s Ratio Structure

To reconstruct a substituted crash box from the micro-view, the negative Poisson’s
ratio structure is introduced, and to provide a more specific view of its appearance
and working principle under the axial crash load, the microstructure and

Fig. 1 Crash box and bumper assembly

Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 37

deformation mode are shown in Fig. 2. As seen from it, this sort of structure is
made up of a series of micro-components which is composed by two sorts of truss
elements. When crash accidents happen, element 1 and element 2 can undertake
stretch and compression force respectively, and the composition of the enormous
micro-deformations may generate a progressive three-dimensional compression
phenomenon, which can be defined as a negative Poisson’s ratio deformation mode.
By comparison with the traditional crash box, this kind of structure has two main
advantages. Firstly, the design and optimization process are more flexible by
adjusting fewer parameters, thus to sustain the crashworthiness target at a more
accurate level. Secondly, the crash force may increase more steadily because of its
space construction, which can further reduce the breaking force and weight on basis
of the same level of crash energy.
The manufacturing process of negative Poisson’s ratio structure is shown in
Fig. 3. To attain the basic parts of the structure, the metal sheet has to be cut into
net-shaped components. After then, the stamping process is followed to form the
two sorts of elements with the input design parameters theta. The final step is to
carry out a welding process, to combine the elements into a complete structure.
Additionally, the manufacturing process of this negative Poisson’s structure is not
merely limited into that shown in Fig. 3, for that the newly originated manufac-
turing process like three-dimensional printing process could also be applied herein
to produce higher quality structures.

2.2 The Space Truss Composite Material

While on the reconstruction process of the frontal crash bumper, the space truss
composite material (Fig. 4), which is originated from a bionic consideration, is
applied herein. Generally, this sort of structure constitutes three main parts, the
outer skin, flesh, and inner bones. In this work, the glass fiber composite material
panel is utilized as the skin, the foam is filled herein as the flesh, and the aluminum
hollow tubes linked by steel wire are used as bones. Theoretically, when the frontal
crash happens, the skin can sustain the integrity of the structure, the bones can
provide an anti-force to prohibit the bending deformation, and the flesh can evaluate

Primary outlook
Crash force
Element 2
Spatial
design
parameters
Deformation Deformation
Element 1

Fig. 2 Negative Poisson’s ratio structure and its deformation mode

38 W. Gao et al.

Fig. 3 Manufacturing process of negative Poisson’s ratio structure

the stability of the deformation process. By combing the deformation characters of

the three main components, the anti-bending capability can be greatly promoted.
The manufacturing process is shown in Fig. 5. As seen from it, the aluminum
tube and steel wire has to be precisely produced firstly, which will be followed by a
composition process to combine the two components into intact bones. After then,
the bones have to be bonded with the ever prepared composite material panels by
the structural glue. Lastly, the foam injection into the gap will help to gain the
needed space truss composite materials. While among the whole process, the
bonding step deserves more attention, for that the weaker adhesive connection will
result in a sharp decline in the lateral stability.

Composite material

Aluminum tube

Steel wire

Foam

Fig. 4 Space truss composite material

Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 39

Fig. 5 Manufacturing process of space truss composite material

2.3 The Physical Test Arrangement

2.3.1 Test of Crash Box

To fully investigate the crashworthiness of the newly designed crash box, two kinds
of physical test is applied herein. At the beginning, the quasi-static compression
test, which is shown in Fig. 6, is arranged to validate the deformation mode as we
predicted.
Besides, to conduct a more accurate sensitivity analysis between design
parameters and crashworthiness behaviors during the high speed crash, the hammer
dropping test, with a 50 kg weight and 4.3 m height, is introduced herein. The
specimen of the negative Poisson’s ratio structure-based crash box is shown in
Fig. 7. As seen from it, two thin metal panels are served as the crush front and three
layers of negative Poisson’s ratio structures are filled among them. By defining the
thickness with different value per layer and with or without foam injection into the
microstructure, three tasks are originated and listed in Table 1, thus to dig out the
correlation between design parameters and crashworthiness (Fig. 8).
40 W. Gao et al.

Fig. 6 Quasi-static test of crash box

t1
t2
t3 Metal penal

Fig. 7 Negative Poisson’s ratio structure

Table 1 Tasks of crash box Task No. t1 (mm) t2 (mm) t3 (mm) Foam-filled
specimens
C1 1.0 1.2 1.8 Yes
C2 1.0 1.0 1.0 No
C3 1.0 1.0 1.0 Yes

2.3.2 Test of Crash Bumper

To prove the anti-bending capability of the space truss composite material structure,
we need firstly to find evidence to demonstrate that the bone can really promote the
anti-deformation ability under the axial load, which is one of the key properties for
sustaining the deformation stability. Therefore, the quasi-static test (Fig. 9) is
applied to validate this view.
After then, it is necessary to find out which component is highly related with the
bending stiffness, thus to provide engineers a more accurate guidance in designing a
space truss composite-based bumper. So that the quasi-static three-point bending
test (Fig. 10) is applied to realize this purpose.
Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 41

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3

Step 4 Step 5 Step 6

Fig. 8 Hammer dropping test of the crash box

Fig. 9 Quasi-static test of bumper

To carried out these two kinds of physical tests, five different specimens are
proposed either, which are listed in Table 2. The differences among them are the
foam filler and bone structure. Specifically, tasks B1 and B3 have all the compo-
nents mentioned above, while tasks B2 and B5 have no bones, task B4 has no steel
wire in the bones by comparison with task B1.

2.3.3 Test of the Reconstructed Assembly

Based on the abovementioned physical component test, the optimal task form of
crash box and bumper can be attained. After then, the crash box and bumper
42 W. Gao et al.

Fig. 10 Three-point bending test of bumper

Table 2 Tasks of bumper specimens

Test name Task No. Skin Foam Aluminum tube Steel wire
Quasi-static B1 Yes Yes Yes Yes
B2 Yes Yes No No
Three-point bending B3 Yes Yes Yes Yes
B4 Yes Yes Yes No
B5 Yes Yes No No

Fig. 11 A class car of FAW

assembly will be carefully optimized according to crashworthiness behavior of the

prototype, an A-class car from FAW, shown in Fig. 11. To validate its lightweight
efficiency, a frontal crash sled test with a 923 kg weight and 15.6 km/h crash
velocity is recommended, which is shown in Fig. 12.
Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 43

Fig. 12 Sled test of crash

box and bumper assembly Newly designed structure

3 Results and Analysis

The deformation mode result of the negative Poisson’s ratio crash box quasi-static
test is shown in Fig. 13. It shows that the gradually compression deformation in
axial direction can result in the shrink of the other two dimensions, which means
that the negative Poisson’s ratio deformation phenomenon is emerged. Besides, the
force versus compression distance curve is shown in Fig. 14. It indicates that the
breaking force of the negative Poisson’s ratio structure is not the peak force, which
is quite different with the traditional structures. Additionally, this curve either
suggests us that the anti-load rises gradually with fluctuations along with the
increase of compression displacement, which is viewed as the needed characteristic
for a crash box design.
The deformation mode of crash box hammer dropping test is shown in Fig. 15,
and the force versus time data, peak force, and residual length are recorded during
the hammer dropping test, which are shown in Fig. 16 and Table 3, respectively. It
can be seen from the results that the load of the three tasks increased with the same
tendency among the first 8 ms, while the force versus time curve of task C3 became
relative moderate during the left time, with only a 60% peak force by comparison
with the other two tasks. Therefore, we can conclude from the comparison between
tasks C1 and C3 that the equal value scattering of layer thickness perform better
44 W. Gao et al.

Fig. 13 Deformation mode of negative Poisson’s ratio crash box’s quasi-static test

Fig. 14 Results of crash

box’s quasi-static test
Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 45

(a) Task C1 (b) Task C2 (c) Task C3

Fig. 15 Deformation of negative Poisson’s ratio crash box’s hammer dropping test

Task C1
TaskC2

TaskC3

Fig. 16 Results of the crash box’s hammer dropping test

Table 3 Results of the crash Task No. Peak force (kN) Residual height (mm)
box’s hammer dropping test
C1 95.9 49
C2 90.8 13.5
C3 58.9 41.5

crashworthiness behavior than the gradually rising of thickness defining.

Additionally, it is also obviously to see that the foam injection into the gap of the
microstructure can greatly enhance the deformation stability and reveal an ideal
crash behavior. Therefore, task C3, which has the same thickness scattering and
with foam injection, is suggested to reconstruct the crash box of the prototype in
this work.
The force versus compression distance curve of bumper quasi-static test is
shown in Fig. 17. By comparison, we can see that the peak force of task B1 is
nearly 10 times as that of task B2, which means that the bone, which is composed
46 W. Gao et al.

Task B1

Task B2

Fig. 17 Results of the bumper’s quasi-static compression test

by aluminum tube and steel wire, plays an important role in elevating the axial
compression stuffiness.
The force versus deformation value of the three-point bending test of crash
bumper is recorded, as shown in Fig. 18. Besides, the deformation mode is shown
in Fig. 19. The results show that the anti-force of task B3 is nearly three times as
that of the other two tasks on the same deformation value, which indicates the
bending stiffness of task B3 is relative higher either. Therefore, we can conclude
that not only the aluminum tube but also the steel wire cannot be eliminated from
the structure, if the bending stiffness is in the concern. Therefore, the space truss
composite material of task B1 or B3 is suggested to reconstruct the crash bumper of
the prototype.

Fig. 18 Results of bumper’s

the three-point bending test
Task B3

Task B4

Task B5
Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 47

Task B3 Task B4 Task B5

Fig. 19 Deformation of the newly constructed bumper’s three-point bending test

On the basis of the above analysis, Task C3 of crash box and Task B1/B3 of
bumper are recommended to reconstruct the crash box and bumper assembly
herein. According to crashworthiness behavior of an A-class car from FAW, the
crash box and bumper assembly based on the microstructure are redesigned and
optimized through CAE analysis by using Lsdyna commercial software. Through a
number of optimization processes, the optimal microstructure-based crash box and
bumper assembly is attained, which is shown in Fig. 20. The deformation record of
sled test by CAE and physical test is shown in Fig. 21, and the acceleration versus
time curve comparison is presented in Fig. 22. As seen from the results, the
deformation mode and acceleration tendency between the simulation and experi-
mental have high consistency, which indicates that the CAE model of the crash box
and assembly has high accuracy and can be utilized to drive an optimization
process.
The sled tests of prototype and optimal newly designed task are both carried out
to make a more detailed comparison. In the crashworthiness research, total energy
absorption, average crash force, and SEA, which are listed in Eqs. (1)–(3), are
widely used in many literature to value the crashworthiness of a typical structure
[3]. And under the same test boundary conditions, better design always means
higher value for all the three parameters mentioned above.

Fig. 20 Optimal reconstructed crash box and bumper assembly

48 W. Gao et al.

Fig. 21 Comparison of CAE and physical sled test of reconstructed crash box and bumper
assembly

Fig. 22 Acceleration versus

time comparison between
CAE and physical sled test CAE result Physical sled test

Z
E¼ f dx ð1Þ

where crash force f versus deformation x data are used herein.

E
F¼ ð2Þ
d

where E and d are the energy absorption and deformation value.

E
SEZ ¼ ð3Þ
m

where E and m are the energy absorption and mass value respectively.
The acceleration of the sled test is shown in Fig. 23. It indicates that the peak
acceleration of the newly designed structure is higher than that of the prototype. The
results of the sled test are listed in Table 4. As can be seen from it, the energy
absorption and average crash force of the new task are 8.188 kJ and 92.0 kN, which
come to a 12.39 and 2.45% increase, respectively. Besides, the SEA rises from
Crash Energy-Absorption Structure … 49

The reconstructed structure

The prototype

Fig. 23 Acceleration versus time comparison between the prototype and the reconstructed
assembly

Table 4 Comparison of sled results

Parameters New task Prototype Percentage of improvement (%)
E (kJ) 8.188 7.285 12.39
F (kN) 92.0 89.8 2.45
SEA (kJ/kg) 2.767 1.351 104.81
M (kg) 2.959 5.392 45.12

1.351 to 2.767 kJ/kg by comparison with the prototype, which further approves the
excellent capability of the new task in energy absorption capability. Furthermore,
the total mass of the new task is merely 2.959 kg, with a 45% cut off by comparison
with prototype. All these abovementioned evidences indicate that the potential
capability of negative Poisson’s ratio microstructure and space truss structure
technology in the crashworthiness-based lightweight design is enormous.

4 Conclusions

The innovated lightweight method discussed in this paper brings a micro-vision of

structure design. The component test results indicate that the negative Poisson’s
ratio structure and space truss composite material do have advantages in the crash
box and bumper design. And the sled crash test results either show that the
deformation mode of the new task could be under control, and the
energy-absorption capability increased dramatically with a significant weight
reduction compared to the prototype.
50 W. Gao et al.

Additionally, it can be seen from this paper that the lightweight design from a
micro-view will be a future trend. A number of other microstructures might be
originated by researchers around the world in the next few years. By combination
with the new manufacturing technologies, such as three-dimensional printing pro-
cesses, the microstructure will gradually release its potential capability in light-
weight area and will provide vehicle engineers with more choices to drive a
lightweight design.

Acknowledgements This work is supported by the Technological Innovation Project No. kg

15034 of China FAW Co., Ltd. The authors also would like to express their thanks for the
guidance and support from Ma Z. D. and Zhou Z. from University of Michigan.

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