Displacement Response of the Spine in Restrained PMHS during Frontal Impacts

Abstract

Efforts to improve restraint design for occupant protection require a detailed knowledge of human kinematic response including that of the spine. This study presents the spinal displacement response of eight PMHS subjected to a simulated 40 km/h frontal collision. The eight PMHS that approximated 50th percentile stature and mass were restrained by a three-point belt. During the tests a motion capture system was used to obtain the 3D displacements of the head, T1, T8, L2, L4, and pelvis relative to the vehicle coordinate system. The results will be immediately useful for kinematic biofidelity assessments of both ATDs and computational models.