A screenshot of Simcenter occupant safety simulation software provides accurate and effective simulation techniques to design safer vehicles.

Simcenter

Occupant safety simulation

Apply accurate and effective simulation techniques to design safer vehicles.

Optimize vehicle design for occupant protection

Occupant and pedestrian safety are critical design aspects that determine whether a vehicle can be homologated. Therefore, thorough prototype testing needs to be done before a vehicle can go to market. However, this testing is expensive and can cause significant delays, especially when problems are discovered. For this reason, vehicle manufacturers save prototyping time and cost by doing upfront research and analysis using simulation.

Simcenter offers software solutions for occupant and pedestrian safety simulation. The software comes equipped with a wide range of human and dummy multi-body models that are used to analyze various safety critical scenarios. Due to the computational speed advantage offered by multi-body dynamics compared to finite element analysis (FEA), engineers can design safety systems in a time-efficient manner.

Simcenter Active Human

Get an accurate prediction of human body response during vehicle maneuvers.

Occupant safety simulation capabilities

Dummy models

Leverage the outcome of decades of research and development, bundled in one of the most extensive crash test dummy model databases available. Simcenter dummy models are known for their accuracy, as well as their computational speed, robustness and user-friendliness. The dummy models are validated on component, assembly and full-system levels using an extensive database of test data.

Simcenter crash test dummy models are successfully applied in the analysis and design of numerous protective devices in various industries, including automotive, aviation, defense and rail.

Several crash test dummies representing several different sizes of people.

Human models

Evaluate and optimize passive and active restraint systems in a wide range of real-world loading conditions with CPU-efficient, biofidelic, and well-validated human models.

Simcenter can predict human responses to conditions that physical dummies cannot. The human model portfolio comprises both passive and active models. The models combine passive stiffness characteristics and active control to realistically represent how living humans respond. Simcenter models are multi-directional approved, allowing an analysis of more complicated scenarios. As of February 2023, they are the only human models on the market that can accurately simulate occupant behavior in pre-crash emergency braking and crash avoidance maneuvers.

Screenshot di un software Simcenter Madymo per la validazione di fantocci e modelli di corpo umano.

Airbag simulation

Simulate out-of-position events for deploying airbags, where injuries can result from contact between the occupant and the airbag. The unique multiphysics solver of Simcenter allows you to combine explicit multibody (MB), finite elements (FE) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for airbag gas dynamics as a single seamless feature set.

A crash dummy hitting a car's airbag

Seat belts and trim

Accurately model deformable structures inside the occupant compartment, such as the seat belt, airbag, seat and trim. Dedicated to this application, Simcenter uses an explicit transient finite element (FE) solver that includes an extensive selection of element definitions, material models and contact algorithms.

A simulation of seat belt testing done with Simcenter Madymo.

Parametric design studies

Perform extensive parametric design studies using a computationally fast method for modeling complex dynamic systems. In Simcenter, you can describe systems as rigid or deformable bodies interconnected by kinematic joints, and you can assign geometrical, material and contact properties to capture all of the physics.

Computer image of two cars crashing into each other, with dummies in both driver seats

Coupling to FE codes

Couple Simcenter with other popular finite element (FE) codes for safety design so you can leverage the Simcenter fast dummy models with your preferred FE solutions. You can also connect with MATLAB to include control algorithms and study their effects on the restraint system. Simcenter supports these FE codes:

  • Ansys LS-DYNA
  • ESI PAM-CRASH
  • Altair RADIOSS
  • SIMULIA Abaqus
Modello di passeggero e sistema di ritenuta Simcenter Madymo.
On-demand webinar

Pedestrian and Occupant safety system development

Integrated safety systems are a combination of passive and active safety systems that aim to improve pedestrian and occupant safety.

Simulazione CFD di due persone in auto con il software Simcenter Madymo.
Case study

EDAG Group

EDAG Group uses Simcenter Madymo to speed time-to-market for new pedestrian safety systems, reducing simulation time for human body behavior from days to hours.

The legs and shadow of a person running across a crosswalk
Case Study

Reducing simulation time for human body behavior from days to hours

Azienda:EDAG Group

Settore industriale:Industria automobilistica e dei trasporti

Sede:Munich, Germany

Siemens Software:Simcenter 3D Solutions, Simcenter Madymo