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Our aim is to show that today's safety standards (FMVSS 208, EC-Proposals) are inadequate in the present state to ensure optimum protection for belted passengers. These standards do not take into account motion sequence during impact. The postulated tolerance limits - HIC, SI, forward displacements etc. - cannot describe the dynamic behaviour adequately. We emphasize the importance of motion sequence to ensure optimum biomechanic conditions, because motion sequence is the necessary prerequisite for any discussion about biomechanical tolerance limits. First results of our current belt-accident investigations indicate that this is an important problem. By applying experience from crash tests and accident investigations, we try to define simple and well-controllable criteria for motion sequence.

From a biomechanical point of view, test criteria in current safety standards for passenger protection do not insure a sufficient over-all protection of quality. First, the deficiencies of data and criteria, responsible for biomechanical problems, are being analysed. Secondly, additional criteria are being defined, which we think are significant for a better over-all evaluation of restraint devices considering biomechanical facts. As a result of a dummy-crash-series, an analysis is presented, demonstrating correlations between the new defined and former criteria. The final aim is to develop a complete system of criteria. By the use of simple evaluation methods it would guarantee clear results concerning biomechanical properties of passenger protection systems. With this technique one can have correct biomechanical evaluations of restraint systems, gained from dynamic tests even with anthropometric dummies.