Project management

The project will benefit from external guidance consisting of highly skilled expert representatives of relevant stakeholders.

Advisory Group The Advisory Group consists of the following members:

• Prof Matthew Reed – Research Scientist  at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI)
• Dr. Philippe Petit – Leading Researcher at LAB PSA, laboratory of accidentology and biomechanics for French car manufacturers
• Mr. Tjark Kreuzinger – Senior Manager at Safety Research & Technical Affairs at Toyota Motor Europe
• Ms. Marcy Edwards – Research Engineer at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
• Prof Duane Cronin – Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, and University Research Chair in Impact Mechanics and Material Characterization (IMMC) at the University of Waterloo

Associated Partners Folksam Research is an Associated partner of VIRTUAL.

International Group The ‘International Group’ of experts will be established and consulted during the project. Following parties have committed themselves already:

• Euro NCAP
• Toyota-Europe
• JARI (research institute from Japan)
• Monash University (Australia)
• UMTRI (USA)
• IIHS (USA)
• Trinity College Dublin (Ireland)

Major achievements are expected with respect to HBMs in VT. Certain models of mechanical structures, such as seats, must be approved to achieve these goals. Technical User Forum A ‘Technical User Forum’ linked to the development of the OpenVT platform, virtual models, methods and testing protocols will be established. The User Forum will allow stakeholders to engage during the project, analyse the models and cases provided, use the models and protocols, comment on the work done in VIRTUAL and ensure a lively knowledge exchange. The Technical User Forum will consist of automotive OEMs, industry users, independent software vendors and software developers, academic HBM users and developers. Stakeholder knowledge VIRTUAL embraces new stakeholders which emerge on the market, for example, in the context of automated vehicles, public transport, shared mobility and connectivity. The project will enable these players to use VT and compete on the market. To make VT successful VIRTUAL bridges from elaborate scientific methodologies related to HBMs to future transport needs. Its dedication to open source accessibility of HBMs and VT protocols distinguishes it from other approaches. Applying this open access strategy will pave way for successful and sustainable introduction of the technologies and contribute greatly to the development of measures to improve road safety. VIRTUAL will profit from stakeholders’ knowledge at various levels. It engages a large community to provide best practise products, to foster a wider use of VT and maximise its impact. Besides the stakeholders included in the Consortium, Associated Partners will be involved.