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A kinematic analysis of the head-neck unit has been conducted in 37 simulated traffic accidents in order to investigate correlations between neck response and injuries. Belted fresh human cadavers in the age range 18 to 74 years have been used as front and rear-seat passengers. The analysed data included 23 frontal collisions, impact velocity 30 km/h, 50 km/h and 60 km/h, barrier impact and 14 90°-car to car lateral collisions with near-side passengers (6 cases) as well as far-side rear-seat passengers with an in-board upper anchoring point for the shoulder belt (8 cases). The head bending angle depended on the type of the collision. At the frontal collision, the mean head bending maxima amounted 79°, the evaluated mean angular velocity maxima and angular acceleration maxima corresponded to 41 rad/s and 2208 rad/s2, the mean maximum velocity in trajectory of the head was 10 m/s, the mean maximum acceleration along the path amounted 23 g.

By an acceleration track operated through a falling weight (9, 11*) with a crash velocity of 50 km/h and a stopping distance of about 40 cm-corresponding to the crease region of many automobiles-the effect of three-point-retractor belts on 30 fresh cadavers and of two-point belts with kneebar on 19 fresh cadavers had been tested. The age of the cadavers ranged from 12-82 years. Qualitatively, almost all injuries known under the term “seat belt syndrome” could be reproduced. The dependence of the degree of injury in regard to the age was quite evident. It can be expected that persons over 40 years of age will suffer the same dangerous injuries as the tested cadavers, caused by the diagonal belts if the above mentioned crash conditions are existent. This will apply to both belt systems tested by us. The shoulder-belt-forces of all of our tests were between 340 kp and 1000 kp, but more serious injuries of the cadavers of older persons could be observed.