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A theoretical study was conducted to prove that the Part 572 dummy submarines more easily than human cadavers because of their different pelvic shapes. The three-dimensional geometrical definition of the lap-belt was developed in this paper for the study of the submarining problem. It was found that not only the lap-belt angles from side view (β1) but also from the upper view in respect to the X-axis (β2) play a significant role in the submarining tendency for each side. The anti-submarining scale is defined by a coefficient which is a function of both angles β1, β2 and the orientation of the upper half of the pelvic notch. A series of sled tests was performed on human cadavers, the Part 572 dummy and the modified dummy. Good agreement was found between the present theory and the experimental results.

This study is related to the modifications of Part 572 dummy for lateral impact, to aid in the evaluation of the injury reducing potential of automotive lateral protection systems. This was done by modifying the rib cage, arms and shoulders of Part 572 so that its impact performance more closely simulates that of a human. According to biomechanical data coming from cadaver testing, the arm was modified by reducing the size of the structural members and increasing the padding of the arm; the mobility of the shoulder was increased in both forward and upward directions. Moreover, the shoulder was modified to become transversely collapsible to a certain extent. The rib cage was redesigned so as to give a more realistic deformation. The measurement of lateral chest deflection was also incorporated into the rib cage design. The frontal impact characteristics of the dummy, both for impact and belts, were left unchanged.