Enhanced vehicle light weighting and safety through tailored hot stamping

拟议的研究将解决基本的材料特性和模型开发所需的引入定制的热冲压工艺制造汽车碰撞能量吸收正面结构部件。热冲压由于其固有的超高强度（1,500 MPa）而被广泛用于制造侧面碰撞保护结构（b柱、侧门槛、车门横梁）。目前的研究将考虑定制热冲压部件，从而引入高强度（高达1,000 MPa）但更大延展性的局部较软区域，从而使该过程能够在局部“定制”区域生产能够吸收碰撞能量的部件。该研究将表征局部微观结构，性能和性能的故障特征的部分定制使用：（i）在模具（IDH）加热，以控制局部淬火速率和由此产生的性能;和，（ii）拼焊板（TWB）。将开发这两类定制部件碰撞行为的数值模型。作为最后的验证，将开发一个演示结构，捕获商业前端结构的正面碰撞响应。前轨组件将被替换为采用定制热冲压制造的轻型版本。将测量该结构的碰撞响应，并根据实验评估/验证模型预测。

The proposed research will address the fundamental material characterization and model development required to introduce tailored hot stamping processes to fabricate automotive crash energy-absorbing frontal structure components. Hot stamping has been adopted extensively to fabricate side impact protective structures (b-pillars, side sills, door beams) due to the inherent ultra-high strength (1,500 MPa) resulting from this process. The current research will consider tailoring of hot stamped components thereby introducing local softer regions of high strength (up to 1,000 MPa) but greater ductility, thereby enabling this process to produce components able to absorb crash energy in local "tailored" regions. The research will characterize the local microstructure, properties and failure characteristics of properties of parts tailored using: (i) in-die (IDH) heating to control local quench rates and resulting properties; and, (ii) tailor welded blanks (TWBs). Numerical models of the crash behaviour of these two classes of tailored parts will be developed. As a final validation, a demonstrator structure will be developed that captures the frontal crash response of a commercial front end structure. The front rail component will be replaced with a light weighted version fabricated using tailored hot stamping. The crash response of this structure will be measured and the model predictions will be assessed/validated against the experiments.