A REUSABLE ENERGY ABSORBING HIGHWAY PROTECTIVE SYSTEM FOR MEDIAN AREAS

A PROTECTIVE SYSTEM WAS DEVELOPED TO BE INSTALLED AT MASSIVE FIXED OBJECT LOCATIONS WHERE CONVENTIONAL PROTECTIVE BARRIERS CANNOT EFFECTIVELY BE USED. THE SYSTEM ALLOWS FOR A VEHICLE TO IMPACT THE BARRIER EITHER HEAD-ON OR AT AN OBLIQUE ANGLE FROM EITHER SIDE. BOTH LINEAR (TOR-SHOK) AND ROTARY (ROTO-SHOK) TYPE ENERGY ABSORBERS ARE USED TO ALLOW THE PROTECTIVE SYSTEM TO MOVE UNDER NUMEROUS COMBINATIONS OF VEHICLE IMPACT VELOCITIES AND ANGULAR APPROACHES. THE TOR- SHOK ABSORBER CONSISTS OF A NUMBER OF TORII LOCATED BETWEEN TWO CYLINDERS, WHICH START TO ROLL WHEN IMPACT OCCURS, CAUSING CYCLIC PLASTIC DEFORMATION STRESS IN THE OUTER FIBERS OF EACH TORUS. THE ROTO-SHOK CONSISTS OF TWO CONCENTRIC DRUMS AND A SET OF SMALL TUBES LOCATED IN THE ANNULUS BETWEEN THE TWO DRUMS. UPON IMPACT THE OUTER DRUM ROTATES AROUND THE STATIONARY INNER DRUM CAUSING A CYCLIC BENDING STRAIN AROUND THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF THE TUBES. THE REPORT DESCRIBES THE ANALYSES AND DEVELOPMENT UNDERTAKEN TO DESIGN, FABRICATE, AND DYNAMICALLY TEST THE COMPLETE HIGHWAY PROTECTIVE SYSTEM. DETAILED DYNAMIC AND STRESS ANALYSES OF THE BARRIER AND ITS COMPONENTS ARE INCLUDED. FABRICATION AND INSTALLATION DETAILS ARE SHOWN ON A SET OF DIMENSIONED DRAWINGS. TWELVE DYNAMIC CRASH TESTS AT SPEEDS UP TO 56 MPH AND ANGLES UP TO 15 DEGREES ARE DESCRIBED AND THE RESULTS SUMMARIZED. THE RESULTS OF THE CRASH TESTS SUBSTANTIATE THE DESIGN AS PRESCRIBED BY THE ENGINEERING DRAWINGS IN THE REPORT. /BPR/

• Corporate Authors:

  Aerospace Research Associates

  ,    

  Bureau of Public Roads /US

  400 7th Street, SW
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Publication Date: 1968-6

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Barriers (Roads); Crash tests; Crashes; Dynamic tests; Energy absorbing materials; Extrusion; Highways; Impacts; Medians; Single vehicle crashes; Structural analysis; Testing; Vehicles
• Uncontrolled Terms: Barriers; Cylinders; Fixed object
• Old TRIS Terms: Energy absorbers; Impact extrusion
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Research; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00219710
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Bureau of Public Roads /US
• Report/Paper Numbers: 96
• Contract Numbers: DOT-FH-11-6736
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 8 1994 12:00AM