Following the publication in November 1994 of the EEVC WG10 proposal for methods to evaluate pedestrian protection for passenger cars and the subsequent adoption of those recommendations into a European Commission draft proposal, ACEA (European Automotive Manufacturers Association) initiated a project to perform a technical evaluation of those test methodologies. The proposed methodology consists of sub-system tests of a child and an adult headform to the bonnet surface, an upper leg impact to the bonnet leading edge, and a leg impact to the bumper and front structure of the vehicle. The programme of work undertaken by ACEA was performed at two European test laboratories and consisted of 269 tests with the four impactors. The tests were performed on seven vehicles selected to represent the variety of vehicles currently on the European roads. Subsequent additional testing has also been performed to add to the experience gained in this initial test programme. This paper reports the work performed within this test programme plus the subsequent test work performed to date. It details the test results of typical vehicles on the road today, evaluates the test methodology in terms of repeatabilitiy and reproducibility. The experience gained in performing the tests is reported and conclusions are drawn relating to the practicality of performing these tests and the technical feasibility of applying the proposed requirements to future vehicles. (A)
Abstract