Abstract
A mathematical occupant restraint model of a PR China-made mini-bus was established by using MADYMO software. The validity of the MADYMO model was evaluated against the head and chest responses from a crash test performed in accordance with the Chinese frontal impact regulation – CMVDR294. In this paper, the collapse load, stroke distance and mount angle of an energy absorbing steering system (EASS) were analysed and optimised in order to reduce the head and chest injury values of the occupant. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the EASS was analysed at different impact velocities. Robustness of the design with different configurations was also investigated using stochastic simulation. (Author/publisher)