GE Strengthens Its Impact Test Capabilities to Help Automakers Meet Emerging Regulations for Pedestrian Impact Protection

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS — August 24, 2005 — With the installation of a new Pedestrian Impact Test System in its Moka Technology Center, in Tochigi, Japan, GE Advanced Materials will help automotive manufacturers and suppliers validate new material technologies for front-end safety systems to help better meet new regulatory obligations around pedestrian safety. GE expects its upgraded test capabilities to help accelerate the development of thermoplastic energy absorber systems, particularly in vehicle components such as bumper beams, fenders, hoods, grilles, garnishes, and wiper systems. This new testing facility compliments the investment GE Advanced Materials has already made in developing and validating proprietary computer analysis techniques to predict pedestrian impact performance of vehicles.

GE recently upgraded its full-scale automotive impact test equipment at the Moka Technology Center to improve the speed and scope of its analytical capabilities in this field. Among the improvements was the addition of pedestrian impact test capabilities to the existing system for bumper impact analysis. The center now can test vehicle pedestrian head and leg impacts, in addition to performing pendulum tests; barrier tests for both the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) and Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) regulations; and pole and angle barrier tests for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). The center also has the capability to test vehicle interior head form impact tests and knee protector impact tests.

Each year, vehicle front-end impacts in the European Union kill an estimated 7,000 pedestrians and injure several hundred thousand more. This has led the European Enhanced Vehicle Safety Committee (EEVC) to develop legislation requiring the automotive industry to test and monitor new vehicles to assess their pedestrian protection performance relating to head impacts and lower leg impacts. The regulations will become effective in October 2005 in Europe.

Similarly, in Japan the Japan New Car Assessment Program (J-NCAP) has developed legislation for head impacts that will become effective in September 2005. J-NCAP is developing different types of lower leg legislation that will be effective in 2010. Other countries are considering similar legislation. In the meantime, vehicles designed and exported to Europe and Japan will need to comply with the local pedestrian protection regulations.

GE’s expanded pedestrian impact capabilities enable head impact tests with child and adult head forms according to J-NCAP regulations, and lower-leg impact tests according to EEVC WG 17 regulations, which are expected to go into effect later this year in Europe. Impact velocities up to 45km/h can be achieved with the high-pressure nitrogen gas/hydraulic system that was constructed by S-Tech Inc. in Saitama, Japan. S-Tech has supplied the head forms and TRL of Wokingham, United Kingdom, has supplied the lower-leg forms.

GE has invested approximately $250,000 (US$) in pedestrian impact safety testing at the center in the following areas:

• Modifications to the center’s bumper impact testing machine to allow pedestrian impact tests to be carried out;

• Upgrades to the control and data-logging software, which operates the testing machine, collects the test data, and provides reporting and data-management functions;

• Installation of a new high-speed digital video system for recording each impact test in real-time;

• Training of engineers and operators;

• Consumables (various parts of the head-forms and leg-forms that must be replaced or calibrated following each test); and

• Government safety certification of the center’s high-pressure gas energy storage system for testing.

Testing equipment will assist the development of new energy absorption technologies for vehicle OEMs by validating computer-designed energy absorption features with real-life impact tests. These energy absorption features will be used in bumpers, front-end body panels, and other front-end components. Several OEMs already have this capability; however, their machines are fully utilized conducting pedestrian impact tests of production cars with current energy absorption technologies.

GE estimates that the actual time to develop a new energy absorber system is between three and six months. This includes engineering design, computer-simulation of the new design, and prototype manufacture followed by testing of the actual parts. The timing for new impact systems to appear on consumer vehicles depends on the plans of individual OEMs. However new legislation in Japan and Europe is driving OEMs to speed up their developments in this area.

Due to their unique properties, engineered thermoplastics can be designed into shapes that will absorb energy in a very efficient manner. This means that a smaller space is required to absorb a set amount of energy vs. traditional energy absorbing technology. Since modern vehicle styling is trending towards offering less “package space” for energy absorbing systems, thermoplastic materials offer a unique advantage in this area. Plastics also offer lower weight compared to steel systems.

“Our new capabilities will allow GE Advanced Materials to accelerate the use of thermoplastic energy absorber systems for pedestrian impact safety by supporting OEM developments in this area,” said Takaaki Nemoto, global application technology, design, and engineering leader, GE Advanced Materials. “Since the OEM testing capabilities are fully utilized with new vehicle testing, GE Advanced Materials can now offer expanded expertise in the testing and development of new systems to help meet emerging global requirements.”

Automotive OEMs using GE materials to develop new energy absorption systems can use the GE facility at no charge. Interested companies should contact Hideyuki Itoi, part performance manager, Pacific, GE Advanced Materials at Tel: 81-285-80-2304; E-Mail: hideyuki.itoi@ge.com.

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