Vehicle Body Part II

4) Safety
Among the structural functions of the unibody it is crucial the occupant protection in the event of a crash.
The body assures its protective action directly with two subsystems :

5.

the front part that reduces its length after the crash,
absorbs and dissipates as plastic deformation, a
significant part of the kinetic energy;

6.

the central part reacts to the transmitted force without

permanent deformations. The vital space available
for the occupants will remain substantially
unchanged. This portion directly acts as passenger
protection, and indirectly provides the proper
connections to fix important safety components:
seats, safety belts, etc

Absorbing elements should be designed to maximize specific absorption.

For example, front strut must support suspensions and, in the same time, absorb the
frontal crash energy, caused by loads with the main component in longitudinal
direction. For this combination of tasks, a tubular longitudinal beam is considered
to be the most appropriate member, with thickness in the range 1.21.5 mm and
high yield strength material, enabling axially failure by folding in a stable and
highly effective way.
For example, front strut must support suspensions and, in the same time, absorb the
frontal crash energy, caused by loads with the main component in longitudinal
direction. For this combination of tasks, a tubular longitudinal beam is considered
to be the most appropriate member, with thickness in the range 1.21.5 mm and
high yield strength material, enabling axially failure by folding in a stable and
highly effective way.
A tubular beam axially loaded can break in two ways
1.

folding (FO), through relevant energy absorption during all collapse path

2.

bending (BE), with load and absorption peak only in bending phase.

Pre-tensioning device
The best restraint solution for occupants is the threepoint seat belt with pre-tensioner. Restrain
components and their attaches must be designed to
tolerate up to 100 g of deceleration
The head restrains are fundamental in preventing
whiplash injuries following a rear-end collision.
They must always be adjusted according to the
occupants height.
The steering column
The steering column can injury the driver in the
event of a crash. Then the column is split into
various, non-aligned segments that are joined
together by universal joints. The steering column
collapses during a crash, avoiding that the
steering wheel collides with the drivers thorax.
Laws specify by how much a steering wheel
may intrude following a collision against a
barrier.

Fire prevention systems

Devices are provided to block the flow of fuel to the engine when a certain
deceleration threshold is reached. Inertia switches that operate following a
collision in any direction (also lateral) are used to stop the fuel flow.
The switch consists of a steel ball with calibrated mass (a) kept by a
magnet in a conical cavity (b). When the impact force exceeds the
predetermined deceleration threshold (generally 8 g, corresponding to a
crash at approximately 25 km/h), the ball moves up within the cavity and
activates an electrical spring contact (c) which opens, interrupting the
electrical supply to the fuel pump.
After the collision, the contact may be restored simply by pressing a
button on the inertia switch (d).
Lower and upper heat shields around the catalyst prevent fire risk to
surrounding elements in case of catalyst overheating.

Airbags
Airbags are inflatable devices folded away in various areas of the passenger compartment (steering wheel,
dashboard, seats, pillars, roof) designed to inflate rapidly and then quickly deflate during a collision (or a
sudden deceleration).
The airbag provides an energy absorbing
surface between the vehicle's occupant
and a steering wheel, dashboard, pillars,
windshield, etc.
Early airbags (1951) were based on a
compressed air system released by
bumper contact. Compressed air could
not inflate airbag fast enough for
maximum safety then today airbag are
deployed by the combustion gases of a
pyrotechnic charge.

When a crash exceeding a minimum predetermined acceleration threshold occurs, specific sensors activate
the airbag propellant charge and the device is inflated in few milliseconds. Deployment must be
synchronized with the occupants movements subsequent to deceleration.

5) Closure
Climate control system
Dashboard is also used to distribute air flows within the passenger compartment. Comfort of occupants is not
only determined by temperature, but also by the local heat flow, then the ideal air flow is obtained with
1. wide flows on large surfaces,
2. flows at low speed,
3. low heat drops.
Vents must also be designed to direct the flow of air onto the windows for demisting.
The heating system is connected with the engine cooling system. Hot air is taken in by a speed adjustable
cooling fan placed under the dashboard and connected to a heat exchanger. The temperature is adjusted by
mixing the air flowing through the heat exchanger with outside air.
When a temperature lower than the outside temperature is required in the passenger compartment an air
conditioning system is used.
A compressor operated by the engine,
compresses a gas refrigerant fluid:
during the compression process a heat
generation takes place.
The refrigerant fluid is then pushed
through the condenser (3) where it is
cooled and reaches the liquid state. Here
the fluid releases the thermal energy
received, partially in the compressor and
partially in the evaporator (11).
The fluid, in liquid state, crosses the
expansion valve (14), is atomized and
conveyed to the evaporator (11).
The evaporation process is completed in
the evaporator (11) where the this
process extracts heat from the external
air flow directed into the passenger
compartment and cools it.

Seals
Seals are important trimming components.
Wind-noise seal (undeformed, doors open). The wind-noise
seal is presses onto the pillar welding seams. It supports the
pillar upholstery and makes the joint look trimmer
Window scrapers, normally provided with a structural metal
core embedded in rubber, are also pressed and conceal the
inner reinforcement welding tab of the window frame
Wind-noise seal between front and rear doors.

The functions of the seals include :

1. preventing wind noise in the connection between fixed and moveable parts.
2. Insulating the passenger compartment from external elements, such as water, dust and noise.
3. Absorbing the energy impressed by the door when it closes .
4. Forming a water drip drain on the roof.

Headlights The property of the parabolic mirror is that any light ray emitted in its focus F is reflected in a
direction parallel to the axis of symmetry of the parabola.
The headlight generates two different types of light beams :
1. High or main beam, nearly parallel to the ground, used for the maximum
illumination when the driver is not crossing other vehicles. In this case the
bulb filament is in the focus of the parabola;

2. Low or dimmed beam, required by law when crossing other vehicles. It

is angled slightly downwards, therefore providing less depth. It is
obtained by means of a second filament of the bulb in a slightly
advanced position, with respect to the focus, and shielded downwards.

Drag Coefficient
2
F = 12 V C A
d
x
F : aerodynamic drag: force component in the direction
d
of the flow velocity
: mass density of the air
V: flow speed (of the object relative to the fluid)
A: reference area
The reference area depends on what type of drag
coefficient is being measured. For automobiles and many
other objects, the reference area is the projected frontal
area of the vehicle.
Effects of tapering angles on Cx
The following values can represent good practice
indications:
: not far from 10 (the double curve indicates value
1
scattering);
: carefully avoid values in the range from 30 to
2
40;
: from 3 to 6 according to length L of the tapered
3
end;
: no less than 8/10.
4
These numbers indicate highly variable engineering
trends and indicate how, a careful analysis is required
to identify the optimal configuration once a certain
style is established.