A design sensitivity study was completed to increase the buckling strength
of a boot binding in the snow sport industry. The occurrence
of a binding failure may lead to serious rider injury. The design variables
significant to the design were identified and an appropriate nonlinear finite
element model was developed to model the kinematics of the locking
device. The effects of process variations, composite material variations,
molded part tolerances, and justification of dimensioned parts in the binding
assembly were incorporated in the study. Several design recommendations
were provided through the product design and re-tooling efforts. An experimental
test designed by the client was modified based on the finite element findings
which lead to high correlation to the analytical prediction work effort
has lead to developing a core competency for the client company in a critical
aspects of binding design, engineering and development.