US Patent 7216904 Impact energizable structure

An impact energy management system comprises at least a portion of vehicle structure with an impact energizable structure attached thereto. The impact energizable structure receives impact energy from an obstacle and transfers the impact energy to the vehicle structure, and has a reconfigurable engagement area extending generally vertically with respect to the vehicle structure. The impact energizable structure is reconfigurable from a first position to a second position to increase the engagement area in response to an impact between the impact energizable structure and the obstacle.