Brach Engineering :: About VCRware® 3.4.1

About VCRware®

Fast. Easy. Validated. Accurate.

All twelve of VCRware's intuitive, Excel-based programs offer the user a familiar, flexible and versatile environment. This environment allows for familiar capabilities including performing additional calculations based on spreadsheet results, creating custom plots of results, and tabulating results for statistical analyses. The vehicle dynamics simulation program is also available in a stand-alone version that provides real-time animation of the vehicle motion.

Features of VCRware 3.4.1 include:

Statistical tools for the analysis of the uncertainty in calculations. Add-Ins are available so Monte Carlo methods can be conveniently used in conjunction with VCRware 3.4.1
The ability to easily switch between calculations in US or SI units
Time-saving optimization tools, including Goal Seek and Solver
Free body diagrams and kinematic diagrams are provided in the workbooks for easy reference
Free technical support
A detailed Help file for each of the twelve programs
The theory underlying each program is covered in detail in the book Vehicle Accident Analysis and Reconstruction Methods by Raymond M. Brach and R. Matthew Brach. Multiple examples for each program are also provided in the book.

To learn more about VCRware's twelve programs, please click an item below.

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Programs & Features

Vehicle Launch

This program calculates the CG trajectory and vehicle pitch orientation as a function of time for a vehicle that is leaving a roadway and beginning to fall. A properly-proportioned graph depicting the trajectory of the vehicle and the vehicle orientation is plotted in additional to the tabular results. This program is only one of its kind for use in the field of accident reconstruction. This topic is covered in Chapter 3 of the textbook.
[Sample View]

Articulated Vehicle Impact

For two vehicles, of which neither, either or both may be articulated, with known physical parameters, orientations, collision center and initial velocity components this spreadsheet uses planar impact mechanics to calculate the final velocity components, ΔV values, energy loss, PDOF and more. The program allows for the inclusion of velocity constraints and external impulses. This topic is covered in Chapter 8 of the textbook as well as in "Analysis of Collisions Involving Articulated Vehicles", SAE Paper 2007-01-0735 and "Impact of Articulated Vehicles", SAE Paper 860015.
[Sample View]

Critical Speed Formula

This program determines the (critical) speed of a single vehicle making yaw marks over a circular path following a sudden steer maneuver for a given frictional drag coefficient and measured curve coordinates. This topic is covered in Chapter 4 of the textbook. See also "An Analytical Assessment of the Critical Speed Formula", SAE Paper 970957.
[Sample View]

Collision Analysis for Two Point Masses

This program uses point mass collision mechanics to calculate the initial speeds of two vehicles traveling initially in known directions and with known, straight-line postimpact paths over a flat surface with known frictional drag coefficients. This topic is covered in Chapter 6 of the textbook.
[Sample View]

Planar Impact Mechanics Analysis

For two vehicles with known physical parameters, orientations, collision center and initial velocity components this spreadsheet uses planar impact mechanics to calculate the final velocity components, ΔV values, energy loss, PDOF, intervehicular impulses, and more. This topic is covered in detail in Chapters 6, 7, and 9 of the textbook.
[Sample View]

Low Speed Vehicle Impact Analysis

Analysis of a low-speed front-to-front or front-to-rear collision of two vehicles using point-mass collision mechanics including the collision coefficient of restitution and vehicle roadway drag, when appropriate. This topic is covered in Chapter 7 of the textbook. See also, "Modeling of Low-Speed, Front-to-Rear Vehicle Impacts", SAE Paper 2003-01-0491.
[Sample View]

Vehicle to Barrier Coefficients

This program determines CRASH3 crush stiffness coefficients A, B and G (and d0 and d1) using data from a vehicle-to-barrier test. This topic is covered in Chapter 9 of the textbook.
[Sample View]

Crush Energy Calculations (and Speed Change from CRASH3)

This program calculates the energy loss and ΔV values using the CRASH3 algorithm for a two-vehicle collision. This topic is covered in Chapter 9 of the textbook.
[Sample View]

Pedestrian-Vehicle Collision

This program calculates the times, velocities, pedestrian throw distance and vehicle braking distance, corresponding to the various events and subevents of a vehicle-pedestrian (or bicycle rider, when appropriate) collision. This topic is covered in Chapter 10 of the textbook. See also "Throw Model for Frontal Pedestrian Collisions", SAE Paper 2001-01-0898.
[Sample View]

Vehicle Dynamics Simulation

This program calculates the planar motion of a vehicle alone or a vehicle pulling a semitrailer as function of time. Driver control modes include locked-wheel braking, lane-change maneuver or arbitrary steering. Individually locked wheels, drivetrain drag and uniform acceleration can be simulated. This topic is covered in Chapters 2 and 13 of the textbook. See also, "Vehicle Dynamics Model for Simulation on a Microcomputer", Int J of Veh Des, Vol 12, #4, 1991 and "Tire Forces: Modeling the Combined Braking and Steering Forces", SAE Paper 2000-01-0357.
This program is available in an Excel version [EXCEL Sample View] and as a standalone program that supports real-time animation of the vehicle motion. [VB Sample View].

Stopping Distance

This program calculates stopping distance (perception-decision-reaction distance plus braking distance) from initial vehicle speed or initial vehicle speed from the stopping distance. This topic is covered in Chapter 3 of the textbook.
[Sample View]

Planar Photogrammetry

For a flat surface, this program calculates locations of specific points on a photograph containing those points using the known locations of at least four calibration points from the site and contained on the same photograph. This topic is covered in Chapter 10 of the textbook.
[Sample View]