COSMOS aids bumper design

Company Total Engineering Services Industry Automotive / Transportation Location U.S.A. Product Used COSMOSWorks Type of Analysis Advanced Nonlinear More Details

The Challenge
Galbreath Incorporated, headquartered in Winamac, Indiana, is a recognized leader in waste handling, recycling and material handling equipment. In 1995, a 30-year study of truck underride crashes by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) culminated in a government mandate, FMVSS No. 223, that affected new trailers to their fleet. Non-compliance was not an option.

As of January 26, 1998, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 223, Rear Impact Guards for Trailers and Semitrailers requires a rear underride guard with a guard height not to exceed 22 inches above the road in order to engage the frontal crush zones structures of the smallest cars; full-width across the rear of the trailer to protect cars involved in offset and angular crashes from the trailer's high and pointed rear corners; and with specific strength and energy-absorbing requirements so that the guard would not bend easily or break away. FMVSS No. 224, Rear Impact Protection requires that trailers rated at/above 10,000 GVW be equipped with rear impact guards in conformance with Standard No. 223.

The Solution
Total Engineering Services was contacted to design trailer guards (bumpers) that meet FMVSS Standard No. 223 requirements and to complete the job within 4 months. Utilizing SolidWorks and COSMOSWorks, each critical structure was designed and analyzed to provide an overall bumper mounting design that would meet the new safety standards and would also include energy absorption capability.

The bumper design for Galbreath refuse hauling container trailers was more complex than the typical semitrailer commonly operating on U.S. highways. Since the bumpers were to be used on trailers designed to pick up and unload large steel containers, the design required a trailer hoist that could be hydraulically raised and lowered. Therefore, the bumpers had to be designed to pivot away from the trailer frame as it was being raised. So, not only did the bumper need to be analyzed for adequate strength to meet the requirements, the pivoting mounting frame also had to be constructed to ensure that the bumper met the new standard.

Summary and Metrics:

• COSMOSWorks was found to be simpler, faster, more versatile and more cost-effective than any of the other FEA software packages examined
• Was able to provide documentation required to prove compliance with FMVSS Standard No. 223.