Numerical reconstruction of the real-life fatal accident at work: A case study

Abstract

Every year about 2.8 million people are injured in accidents at work in Europe. The resulting high costs are incurred by the victims themselves, their families, employers, and the society. A numerical simulation can be used to reconstruct accidents and to provide information about the course and cause of those accidents. This knowledge is crucial in developing successful safety systems and safety procedures. This paper presents a multi-body approach to reconstructing a real-life fatal accident of a forklift that overturned with its operator. A reconstruction took place to find out why forklift overturned. This study consisted of about 700 simulations. Their results were compared to data from the real accident. The path of simulated wheels and the location of the model of a forklift after the accident corresponded to the real tire tracks and the final location of the real machine. The location and position of the computer model of the operator was similar, too. The injury criteria obtained in the simulation exceeded the critical values for the head and neck, which corresponded to the operator's injuries: numerous fractures of the skull and cervical spine fracture with dislocation. Thus, speeding and a sudden turning maneuver caused the accident. © 2013 Springer-Verlag.