We hoped to have the final piece of the FlexObile ground breaking technology in place for the ARC CSI crash conference but we missed the deadline. A full rotation had to be achieved and thoroughly tested before the show. Which means that we had to abandon the "one time use" crumple can for a reusable system.

Air pressure offering a multitude of innovative evolutionary advancements seemed well suited for the FlexObile's persona. Initial math predicts a max of 10 to 15 psi for a high speed collision. A device rated at max 50 PSI should be within our prototyping capabilities and give a lot of extra capacity for various collision scenarios . The key is the ability to vary Air Pressure before and during the collision.

By varying PSI we can adjust for:

1. pulse of the collision
2. mitigate the oncoming vehicle weight advantage (w/ engine force struts)
3. Speed of the vehicle
4. pedestrian safety
5. non-frontal, offset collision

This complete the full vision of the Physics principle of the FlexObile.

Test 1 - Full Recoil

This is a test of an inner tube wrapped in canvas dropped from a height of 4 feet with 50 lbs on top. You can not see this in the vid, but this device recoiled almost to the drop height of 4 feet. This is not what you want to happen during a collision.

Test 2

The second test component had a taper shape. I tried sealing an inner tube to no avail. The rubber seal rupture blowing out the canvas. The recoil was truly minimized. The gauges maxed at 15 psi at peak pressure. The air regulator and a small pressure relief valve both failed.

Taper shape
Cheap Canvas

Test 3

This is a compilation of three drops. As you can clearly see the recoil is reduce to 2 to 3 inches. Almost but not perfect, the goal is to completely catch the on coming object.