The proposed introduction of EEO legislation (1998) for the protection of pedestrians and vulnerable road users will, for head injury reduction, require a large number of bonnet impact tests with pedestrian headforms to prove compliance.

Mathematical modelling of bonnet impact tests early in the design stage will enable problems to be identified and solutions to be found before committing to full practical testing. Adult and child headforms have both been modelled using the LS-DYNA3D code and the accelerations experienced by the headforms have been correlated with practical certification tests. Computer simulations of headform bonnet impacts have been compared with actual bonnet impact tests on a. current production vehicle.