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Simulations of Heavy Truck Rollovers and Sleeper Restraint System Effectiveness

2014-09-30
2014-01-2420
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Requirement (FMCSR) 393.76(h) states that “a motor vehicle manufactured on or after July 1, 1971 and equipped with a sleeper berth must be equipped with a means of preventing ejection of the occupant of the sleeper berth during deceleration of the vehicle.” [1] Furthermore, this standard requires that “the restraint system must be designed, installed and maintained to withstand a minimum total force of 6,000 pounds applied toward the front of the vehicle and parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle.” [1] Today, sleeper berths are equipped with sleeper restraint systems that function to contain the sleeper occupant inside the sleeper berth during reasonably foreseeable crashes. To assess the effectiveness of sleeper restraint systems, computer simulation models of the sleeper cab environment and these restraint systems were developed, with a simulated supine occupant in the sleeper.
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