Crashworthiness evaluation of composite vehicle side door

This paper intends to address the crashworthiness, design aspects, and method of analysis with particular reference to the application of composite materials to automotive front door design. The current material solution, steel solution, has been substituted by chosen composite materials on the bases of equal thickness and equal stiffness criteria. Major constraints are dealt with crash resistance and stiffness of door panels and impact beam against side crash, according to exist standards. Finally, the results predicted by the finite element analysis are evaluated and interpreted on the bases of crashworthiness and method of production to insight the effectiveness of the proposed solution. The results revealed that composite door could be better for absorbing energy during the side crash impact if it is designed properly.