Comparison of Head Impact Data for Occupant Computer Predictions and Sled-Buck Crash Tests of Front Adult to Rear Child Interaction in Rear Impact

Abstract

In this study, computer simulations of rear impacts were performed with an available ATB (Articulated Total Body) computer code to demonstrate an efficient and accurate means for assessing safety performance and hazards associated with occupied front seat collapse into a rear seat area occupied by children. The analysis considered a wide range of different sized front-seated adults (i.e. 50 kg females to 110 kg males), various types of front seats with a range of ultimate collapse strengths (i.e. 3.5kN up to 12.5kN), and various impact severities with speed changes between 20 to 50 kph. A 3 year-old child was used as the model for the rear child surrogate seated in the backbench seat of a 2-door sedan. An actual vehicle crash pulse was used as the basis for the analysis pulses. After performing the computer analysis predictions, sled-buck experimental tests were run with the same parameter range, and a full vehicle interior, to validate the human model predictions. Predicted head accelerations for the rear seated child and the front-seated adult were compared with the test results. Good correlation was achieved for the predicted and test head accelerations, as well as the resultant “head injury criteria” curves with actual accident cases of injured children.