Child resistant pan-somatic all terrain vehicle (ATV) ignition system

Abstract

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is considering various means to reduce deaths and injuries among children caused by ATVs. The goal of this project was to use engineering controls to prevent children from starting an adult-sized ATV. This design effort explores the use of an ignition interlock system to prevent a child from starting an adult ATV. The Consumer Federation of America has petitioned the CPSC to make ATVs safer and to ban the sale of adult size ATVs for use by children under the age of 16 since it can create regulations to ensure that products are safe. The project team conceptualized five proof-of-concept designs for a child resistant ignition mechanism that is low-cost on a large scale, relatively easy for adults to operate, and would inhibit children from starting ATVs. The proposed design alternatives covered constraints including cognitive capability, anthropometric measurements and weight, and biometric attributes. The target age range of children to be limited by the ignition interlock design is ten years and younger. As children reach the ages of eleven and twelve they develop adult behaviors and abilities due to changes in the brain (e.g. formal operations); thus injuries will not be completely preventable as the age of the child increases. A Fault Tree Analysis and usability testing were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the design.