Each of the two test sleds is equipped with a crash-proof data acquisition system that measures and records data from the experiments. 'Depending on equipment, these can be accelerations, strains, forces, or deformations', says Mr. Kriescher. A 19 kW lighting system with eight flood lights is used for high-speed video recordings. Background for this new facility's construction is that the eco-friendly, or eco-friendlier, car of tomorrow should be first of all lighter while still maintaining safety. For this reason, sustainable, lightweight construction concepts must be developed often using combinations of materials for which no validated calculation methods yet exist. Among these are components or assemblies made of fibre composite materials as well as novel energy absorption concepts. 'With the dynamic test system, we'd like to examine how geometry, joining technology, and material properties play together given entire components, not just individual parts, and what consequences this has for the calculation methodology', summarises Engineer Kriescher. 'In collaboration with colleagues from construction design and calculation, and with scientists from other DLR institutes, we can provide industry with the entire development chain from concept to crash test.'