Traffic Accident Reconstruction

Accident reconstruction is the application of scientific and engineering principles and investigative techniques to determine how and why an accident occurred. Our staff have investigated hundreds of traffic accidents, from low speed rear-enders resulting in minimal vehicle damage and soft-tissue injuries to high speed collisions resulting in severe vehicle damage and severe injuries or fatalities. Our capabilities include: computer-assisted vehicle dynamics and collision analysis; accident simulation and animation; and full-scale vehicle performance and impact testing.

We routinely perform reconstructions of accidents of all types, involving: Automobiles, light trucks, and sport-utility vehicles. Heavy trucks, truck-trailer combinations, buses, and motor homes. Bicycles and motorcycles. Vehicle/pedestrian and vehicle/animal collisions. Go-karts and forklifts. Freight trains.

D&A's accident reconstruction services include: Evaluation of the design, condition, or failure of vehicle systems and components as a contributing cause of an accident or injuries (examples: brakes, steering, suspension, restraints, and engine management and control systems). Calculation of vehicle initial and impact speeds, delta-V's, and accelerations using physical evidence such as tire marks and vehicle damage, and analytical techniques including computer simulation. Identification of contact points and vehicle orientations at impact through examination of physical evidence, laboratory analysis of paint and debris samples, and vehicle dynamics analyses.

• Quantification of driver line-of-sight visibility using exemplar vehicles, anthropometric data, accident scene data, and computer modeling.
  
  
• Evaluation of the adequacy of roadway lighting, intersection traffic controls, pedestrian crossing controls, and roadway drainage.
  
  
• Quantification of accident "avoidability" through evaluation of human factors such as driver demographics, anthropometry, vision and visibility; and physical accident data including the condition of vehicle systems, roadway design and condition, and environmental data.
  
  
• Vehicle design and crashworthiness analysis using statistical accident and injury data in conjunction with engineering analyses.