Revealing Safety: Mercedes Adopts X-ray Technology in Crash Tests | GVE London – Blog

Safety in Mercedes-Benz cars is the most important aspect, with the manufacturer employing robust structural designs and advanced safety systems in its cars. These vehicles undergo rigorous testing to ensure they meet stringent safety standards, offering peace of mind through innovative features that protect both drivers and passengers on the road.

Recently, Mercedes collaborated with the Fraunhofer Society at the Ernst Mach Institute in Freiburg and conducted the first X-ray car crash test. In this demonstration, experts could see the internal deformation processes that take place in a crash, using the insights to improve overall safety in Mercedes vehicles.

A strong linear accelerator powered the crash test, with more than 1000 high-quality images being captured by X-Ray every second. This gives unmatched depth and clarity to test results and is a huge milestone in supercar safety research. This shows the effort and commitment put by Mercedes into safety innovation and protecting occupants within their vehicles.

World’s First X-Ray Car Crash Test

Mercedes successfully carried out an X-ray crash test using a real car in partnership with the EMI Institute in Freiburg. The test starts with a really loud sound as a device fitted on a crash barrier rams into an orange C-Class from the side at 60 Km/h. This crash test was a unique spectacle even for the experts and the main role was of a linear accelerator serving as an X-Ray camera, located on the ceiling in a frame just above the car.

Facing the impact for the test was a SID II dummy, a female anatomy specimen specially made for side impact crash testing. This crash test at the EMI in Freiburg shows that X-ray technology at high speed helps visualise the dynamic internal deformation processes of a car. The deformations that were invisible earlier are now transparent and experts can thoroughly analyse them, thanks to 1000s of high-resolution photos for analysis.

Powerful Linear Accelerator – Over 1000 Images Per Second Through Ultrashort X-Ray

Similar to improving Mercedes servicing, the manufacturer’s safety division was researching using X-rays for crash tests, and the breakthrough factor that led to success was using the 1kHz linear accelerator for radiation. It’s more powerful than previously-used X-ray flashes and screens all materials part of the vehicle construction. An X-Ray pulse has a duration of a few microseconds and the linear accelerator generates a continuous stream of them.

In the test, a beam shines through the car’s body and dummies inside it. Under the test car is a flat detector that works as a digital image receiver. An electric signal is formed when the X-Ray radiation hits the detector and its intensity depends on the strength by which the radiation was absorbed by the test car and the dummy. The actual impact time spans a few milliseconds during which the X-Ray system clicks over 1000 high-resolution images.

These images are put in a video, offering proper insights into deformations of the car’s safety components and damage to the dummy’s body. Experts observe all this in detail to check out the extent of damage and can come up with innovative ideas to enhance the overall safety of Mercedes-Benz luxury vehicles.

Conclusion

As Mercedes Benz becomes successful with using X-ray technology for car crash testing, it is a significant step forward in enhancing vehicle safety where experts can understand and optimise every aspect of car crash dynamics. The revealing insights offered by X-Ray testing will help come up with innovative safety measures.

If you are the proud owner of a Mercedes luxury vehicle and want to get it serviced or repaired, make sure to visit GVE London, an authorised Supercar Service Centre. Highly-experienced technicians will take care of your vehicle, ensuring the use of genuine, OEM parts. Further, you also get wrapping, detailing, PPF, modifications, etc. for your supercar here.