Influence of Pre-collision Occupant Properties on the Injury Response during Frontal Collisions

Optimal performance of future adaptive restraint systems will require an accurate assessment of occupant characteristics including physical properties and pre-collision behavior of the occupant. This study is aimed at evaluating the sensitivity of frontal collision induced injuries to occupant state parameters: stature, mass, and pre-collision postural orientation. A numerically modeled restraint system was used to determine the potential benefits in injury mitigation by accounting for the occupant state parameters estimated during the pre-collision phase. The restraint system with properties optimized for varying sets of occupant anthropometries and posture states reported a reduction of 20-35% in the value of overall injuries. Restraint loading characteristics optimized for individual values of occupant parameters reported significant variation in the load-limiting threshold of the restraint system (4 kN to 8 kN). The influence of occupant state parameters on the overall injuries sustained in frontal collisions and the requirements on optimized restraint performance will provide a framework for developing restraint systems using accurate information regarding precollision occupant behavior.