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This investigation addresses and evaluates the injury patterns of car occupants, as a function of air bag deployment with or without belt use. A companion paper provides a comprehensive evaluation of air bag field performance, in comparison with the no restraint,or other restraint conditions,concerning: Cars, Exposure, Occupants, Restraints, & Protection provided by the restraints. The findings reported in this investigation are based exclusively on the data contained in the records of NHTSA's NASS/CDS1988-1992. The investigation focuses on car drivers. Because of the relatively late and limited introduction of air bags, all other light vehicle populations are either not represented, or represented by a very meager sample in the sources cited above.

This investigation encompasses a comprehensive evaluation of air bag field performance, in comparison with the no restraint, or other restraint conditions. The paper at hand addresses: Cars, Exposure, Occupants, Restraints, & Protection provided by the restraints. A companion paper addresses the injury patterns of car occupants. The findings of the investigation are based on two primary sources of national coverage: (i) the field crash experience contained in the records of NHTSA's NASS/CDS 1988-1992; and (ii) the fatal accident experience contained in NHTSA's FARS 1991-1993. The investigation focuses on car drivers. Because of the relatively late and limited introduction of air bags, all other light vehicle populations are either not represented, or represented by a very meager sample in the sources cited above.

This paper is based on the crash and casualty experience compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) National Accident Sampling System, Crashworthiness Data (NASS/CDS 1988-1992), and by the William Lehman Injury Research Center (University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital/Ryder Trauma Center) crash data files. The NASS/CDS files provide data on injuries to occupants in all types of tow-away crashes. The William Lehman Injury Research Center files provide detailed crash analysis and injury documentation of more than 100 restrained occupants with injuries from frontal crashes. These files provide a basis for recognizing injury patterns among restrained occupants and postulating their causes. The purpose of this paper is to report on an observed pattern of liver and spleen injuries suffered by drivers wearing shoulder belts without the lap belt fastened.

The William Lehman Injury Research Center has conducted multi-disciplinary investigations of fifty crashes involving drivers protected by air bags. In all cases, serious injuries were suspected. Nine cases involved fatal injuries. These cases are not representative of crashes in general. However, when used in conjunction with NASS/CDS they provide insight into the most severe injuries in crashes of vehicles equipped with air bags. A comparison with data from the National Accident Sampling System; Crashworthiness Data System (NASS/CDS) shows that head injury and abdominal injury make up a larger fraction in the Lehman data than in NASS/CDS. Examination of fatal cases indicates that head injuries are frequently caused by intruding structure or by unfavorable occupant kinematics among the unrestrained population.

This paper presents the methodology and results of an analysis of the available information on motor vehicle safety which could be used to provide a basis for establishing priorities for future Government and private sector efforts directed at enhanced crash protection. The work was stimulated by several factors: (1) 5 years have elapsed since the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a plan for motor vehicle safety research and development, (2) motor vehicles have changed substantially over the past several years, (3) the quantity and quality of accident data and vehicle crash performance information have increased dramatically over the past 5 years, and (4) Government policies and the amount of Government and private sector resources available for future efforts are changing.

This paper presents the methodology and results of an analysis of the available information on motor vehicle accident occurrence which could be used to provide a basis for establishing priorities for future Government and private sector work directed at enhanced crash avoidance or mitigation. The work was stimulated by several factors: (1) the absence of a recent and updated framework for problem evaluation; (2) motor vehicles have changed substantially in the past several years; (3) the quantity and quality of accident data and vehicle accident avoidance performance information have increased very substantially over the past 5 years; and (4) Government policies and the amount of Government and private sector resources available for future work have changed. This study takes the Agency's automated files on accident experience as the baseline information on motor vehicle involvement in accidents of all types.