A: Probably a good place to start since it is a low speed impact is our restitution paper:
- Abstract:Effects of restitution on damage interpretations are compounded by the fact that restitution reduces the residual deformation while increasing the total impact speed change. This paper presents a revised analytical procedure to include restitution effects for the CRASH program and refinements to the restitution modeling within the SMAC program. The conversion of vehicle impact test results into inputs for the two revised programs is also included. The effects of the refinements to the damage analysis procedures on reconstruction results are illustrated by direct comparisons with corresponding results produced by the original SMAC and CRASH programs and with measured data from full scale vehicle impact tests.
Since you have a low speed impact you are in the restitution phase for damage analysis and so need to consider it.
Therefore be sure to consider a “range of speeds” in lower speed impacts due to restitution.
In addition, there have been a lot of papers on low speed impacts, restitution, damage analysis, for example:
- Antonetti, Estimating the Coefficient of Restitution of Vehicle-to-Vehicle Bumper Impacts, SAE paper 98-0552
- Burkhard, DeltaV, BEV and Coefficient of Restitution Relationships as Applied to the Interpretation of Vehicle Crash Test Data, SAE paper 2001-01-0499
- Cipriani, et al, Low Speed Collinear Impact Severity: A Comparison Between Full Scale Testing and Analytical Prediction Tools with Restitution Analysis, SAE paper 2002-01-0540
- Lawrence, Front and Rear Car Crush Coefficients for Energy Calculations, SAE paper 2010-01-0069
- King, et al, Comparison Testing of Bumper Isolators, SAE paper 1999-01-0096
- Bailey, et al, Data and Methods for Estimating the Severity of Minor Impacts, SAE paper 95-0352
- Heinrich, et al, Low-Speed Impact Testing of Pickup Truck Bumpers, SAE paper 2001-01-0893
- MacInnis offer a database (for purchase) of low speed bumper isolator data
- Further Validation of EDCRASH Using the RICSAC Staged Collisions, SAE paper 89-0740
- I caution you that the creative 'comparison' techniques for the EDCRASH trajectory analysis validation by EDC is somewhat sketchy, see Validation for vehicle to vehicle collision models? for a discussion of problems with their use of ‘combined impact speeds’ and ‘95% confidence’ to perhaps hide 40% error problems with the trajectory solution of EDCRASH. However i think the damage analysis validation in the paper isn't subjected to that same treatment.