Tesseract’s patented Uniform Deceleration Unit (UDU) technology that absorbs energy in a crash with Cymat’s SmartMetal™ stabilized aluminum foam.
James Y. Lancaster, CEO of Tesseract Structural Solutions, said, “I am really excited about this coordinated effort with Cymat Technologies. The combined technology provides a powerful platform to design parts that can save lives while fitting into existing spaces in vehicles."
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (PRWEB) October 20, 2020
Tesseract Structural Innovations announced today that it has entered into a Co-Operation Agreement with Cymat Technologies to combine Tesseract’s patented Uniform Deceleration Unit (UDU) technology that absorbs energy in a crash with Cymat’s SmartMetal™ stabilized aluminum foam. The combination of UDU and SmartMetal allows for innovative solutions to absorb crash or blast energy in numerous applications. Tesseract develops lightweight solutions for crash energy absorption that saves lives and the combination of Cymat’s SmartMetal™ product line is especially well suited for use in Tesseract products. With Tesseract engineering and placement of Cymat’s materials, the Tesseract UDU has been proven in physical crush and FEA simulations to absorb more energy than any other approach by weight.
James Y. Lancaster, CEO of Tesseract Structural Solutions, said, “I am really excited about this coordinated effort as SmartMetal™ plays a significant role in helping enable our engineered solutions to exceed the performance of other methods of absorbing energy in a variety of applications. The combined technology provides a powerful platform to design parts that can save lives fitting into existing spaces in vehicles ranging from passenger cars to light trucks, but can be extended into larger vehicles as well.”
The National Safety Council estimates 37,133 people were killed and 4.4 million people injured on U.S. roads in 2017. Despite advances in vehicle safety, small overlap crashes (SOL), where impact takes place off center in front of the wheel well, have exposed safety vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities are evident when a car strikes another vehicle, a tree, a utility pole, or a highway barrier on the front corner of the vehicle. SOL crashes account for over one quarter of auto crash fatalities. With crash energy passing through the wheel well, there is little structure to resist and absorb the generated forces that reach the passenger area. New solutions to absorb those forces are needed and must be lightweight, low-cost, and easy to integrate. This is just one application example where Tesseract and Cymat can impact vehicle safety for passengers. Other important applications in development include the protection of electric vehicle battery compartments to prevent explosions and fires in crashes.
Michael Liik, CEO of Cymat Technologies, said, “We have been working informally with Tesseract for a number of years now, fully apprising their engineers of the relevant properties of SmartMetal™ and how best to deploy them in design solutions. Their knowledge of the automotive industry and how to engineer products using our foams for vehicle safety was a key driver for the decision to enter into this agreement.” He went on to say, “We can also use their design expertise in other industry verticals such as military and nuclear, where end users are also seeking specific solutions for efficient energy absorption.”
Tesseract’s patented UDU technology is based on a composite structure that fits into the wheel well or other areas of a vehicle. The UDU composite structure consists of Cymat’s SmartMetal™ foam surrounded by a novel high-strength aluminum skin structure. The UDU structure was designed to limit the transfer of crash forces while maximizing energy absorbing deformation. By limiting crash forces and absorbing the crash energy, the risk of serious injury or death is dramatically reduced. In addition, UDU acts as a barrier to help prevent intrusion of vehicle components into the occupant space during an accident.
About Tesseract Structural Innovations, Inc.
Tesseract Structural Innovations, Inc. is developing new solutions for vehicle safety. Its flagship product, the Uniform Deceleration Unit or UDU, is a unique structure that has the ability to absorb an enormous amount of energy during a vehicle crash. The patented UDU is designed to fit into the wheel well of virtually any light vehicle including cars, trucks, minivans, SUVs, or crossovers. Through its ability to absorb significant kinetic energy, the UDU reduces crash forces to reduce impact shocks and prevent intrusion of vehicle components into the passenger space during the crash. UDU is a major advance in vehicle safety that can save lives and prevent serious injuries. Tesseract Structural Innovations, Inc. is a VIC Technology Venture Development™ portfolio company. For more information, please visit https://www.tesseractinnovations.com
About Cymat Technologies Ltd.
Cymat Technologies Ltd. has the global rights, through patents and established know-how, to manufacture Stabilized Aluminum Foam (“SAF”), a unique, ultra-light, cellular metallic material. The proprietary production process entails the injection of gases through a molten bath of alloyed aluminum infused with ceramic particles. The result is an advanced, lightweight, recyclable material that exhibits unique characteristics including: customizable density and dimensions; mechanical energy absorption; thermal and acoustic insulation; and time, temperature and strain-rate insensitivity. A key benefit of this continuous foam production process is its scalability and resultant low cost of production. SAF is used in such industries as architectural design, military and automotive. Cymat markets its architectural SAF under the AlusionTM brand and its automotive and military SAF under the SmartMetalTM brand. For further information , please visit our website at https://www.cymat.com.