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popsci_2013 00204.txt

#Massive CT SCANNER Will Glean Safety Insight From Wrecked Cars Computed tomography (CT SCANNERS are great for diagnosing problems in people but what about cars? The Fraunhofer Development Center is using the biggest CT SCANNER it can find to analyze wrecked cars. Researchers hope to gain some insight into how individual components react under the forces of a collision. Fraunhofer says a CT provides analysts with a three-dimensional view of the wreckage without disturbing anything. That sounds good but how do you fit a car in a CT SCANNER? Apparently you just get a bigger scanner. Fraunhofer is building a giant scanner that it says can be used for cars as well as to detect damage to airplane wings and to scan the contents of shipping containers. Here's how Fraunhofer says it will work. A crashed car is hoisted onto a turntable. As it turns two X-ray detectors on either side scan it and a computer merges the multiple images generated into a whole three-dimensional CT SCAN. The giant scanner has a resolution of 0. 8 mm but its designers hope to get it down to 0. 4 mm. The scans could theoretically allow crash investigators to track the weakening or failure of specific parts across an entire car showing which where forces were directed and how each part of a car's structure reacted. The question is: will the giant scanners actually fit in any existing crash test labs? This article written by Stephen Edelstein was published originally on Motor Authority a publishing partner of Popular Science. Follow Motor Authority on Facebook and Twitter. 2015 Cadillac Escalade: More Power Luxury Efficiency 2014 Mercedes-benz S63 AMG 4matic: Super Sedan First Drivehow To Change Your Car's Oil: 7 Simple Step p

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