Vehicles can be easily used as a weapon in terrorist attacks, because they are easy to procure and require little experience and preparation.
The countering of such threats is generally referred to as Hostile Vehicle Mitigation.
JRC research in this domain focuses mainly on three aspects:
The JRC is developing a tool assessing the maximum approach speed of vehicles along approach roads. This follows the logic of a Vehicle Dynamics Assessment (VDA) as a first step in the mitigation against vehicle as a weapon attacks. Find out more about the Vehicle SPEed Evaluation and Dynamics Assessment (V-SPEED).
The JRC puts at the disposal cost-free ‘Generic Vehicle Models’ for download. They are brand-independent (only representing a vehicle category in line with ISO 22343-1) and their properties (mass, dimensions, etc.) can be easily changed through parameters. Find out more about our Generic Vehicle Models.
Numerical simulations of vehicle impacts on security barriers can support stakeholders, complementing physical tests. Numerical simulations allow to test a great variety of impact scenarios in a cost-efficient way. Find out more about our Numerical simulations in the HVM domain.