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Over the last several years, designers have been working toward developing airbag suppression systems in order to satisfy the new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 - Occupant Crash Protection requirements currently being phased-in [1, 2]. By September 1, 2005, all vehicles are required to be in compliance with the new requirements. The new rule requires that vehicles must have an airbag suppression system that turns the airbag off in cases where a child or child seat is detected in the front passenger occupant position. Typically incorporated in the seating structure or cushion area, these suppression systems are activated each time the seat is occupied. More so than any other component, this feature makes safety, durability, and reliability testing of these systems critical to their functionality. This paper will discuss how airbag suppression systems have affected the standard testing procedures of vehicle components including seats and airbags.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 202 - Head Restraints [1] sets forth criteria pertaining to the dimensional and safety requirements for front outboard head restraints in passenger vehicles, light multipurpose vehicles, trucks, and buses. On January 4, 2001, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a Notice for Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for FMVSS 202, wherein referred to as FMVSS 202A [2]. The proposed requirements, which apply to all outboard head restraints, provide higher strength and dimensional limits, introduce new criteria for backset and adjustment retention, and partially harmonize with existing European regulations. This paper will discuss upgraded testing equipment and methodologies with respect to head restraints and provide test data from a developmental test project.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 202A - Head Restraints sets forth the criteria pertaining to the dimensional and safety requirements for outboard head restraints in passenger vehicles, light multipurpose vehicles, trucks, and buses. On December 7, 2004, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) officially published the Final Rule for FMVSS 202A[1]. The new requirements, with compliance to either a static option or a dynamic option, become effective on September 1, 2008 for front seat outboard occupants. For rear seat outboard occupants, the effective date is September 1, 2010, through an amendment published on March 9, 2006. This paper will discuss the dynamic test option and the changes to the test procedure and method used to conduct the test. An accelerator-type sled system, along with a 50th percentile male Hybrid III test dummy specified in 49 CFR Part 572 Subpart E and other peripheral items, are used in this testing.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 - Occupant Crash Protection establishes performance requirements to determine whether passenger vehicles, light multipurpose vehicles, and trucks meet conditions and injury criteria specified by the standard. On May 12, 2004, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) amended the standard to set the path for future air bag development [1, 2]. The amendment concerned the development of airbag systems that would be designed to minimize the risk of air bag induced injuries in comparison to current technologies. These new rules forward the framework for engineering of these systems without strictly regulating their design. This paper will discuss the test methodologies used from the initial design phase to the final validation phase of a vehicle. Strategies for advanced air bag system types, suppression and low risk occupant mixes, and the use of human subjects will be discussed.

In April 1997, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a final rule amending Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 201U. This rule specifies improved upper interior head impact protection requirements for all vehicles with a GVWR of 10,000 lbs or less (and buses under 8,500 lbs). The purpose of this new safety standard is to afford occupants within a vehicle additional protection to reduce the likelihood of severe head injury regardless of the type of vehicle collision. As with past standards, the NHTSA provided a test procedure to be used for compliance testing. This procedure includes information regarding set-up, targeting, testing, and data analysis. The targeting procedure, which locates all applicable target points on the upper interior trim of a vehicle, was written without being vehicle-specific. This test procedure is one of the most complex and time-consuming testing protocols developed in recent years.

This paper presents the resultf a project concerning the development of a test procedure for evaluating rear impact guards installed on trailers. The procedure was based on requirements established in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 223, Rear Impact Guards. Rear impact guards are required on trailers to prevent passenger vehicles from driving underneath the rear of a trailer, commonly referred to as underride. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that 11,551 rear-end crashes with trucks, trailers, and semi-trailers occur annually. These crashes result in approximately 423 passenger vehicle occupant fatalities and 5030 nonfatal injuries. The nonfatal injuries include lacerations to the head and neck area, severe brain trauma, and internal hemorrhaging. The objective of the test procedure was to present uniform formats for testing and data recording, and provide suggestions for the use of specific equipment.

Historically, crash development component testing has been conducted using gravity-based vertical drop towers. The drop tower carriage is loaded to a specified weight, raised to a specific height to achieve an energy target, and dropped onto the part. This long-used approach has significant limitations with respect to achievable speed and energy, part orientation, impact angle, useable impact surface, component size, etc. With the wide variance in simulating today’s global crash scenarios, a better approach is being developed using an impact sled. The most significant advantage of this system is that there is a much higher achievable speed and energy which can be controlled with precise accuracy. This paper will provide an overview of the impact sled test system, as well as the methodology used to conduct the testing. The overview will include the challenges faced during the development of the impact sled, as well as the need for accurate and precise component fixturing methods.

This paper presents testing methodologies used for the evaluation of airbag sensor systems. The methods are geared towards the analysis of airbag deployment/non-deployment situations through the use of harsh and abusive tests that include both driving and stationary impact conditions. Readers of the paper will gain a broad understanding of the testing options that are available to develop suitable airbag sensor systems and deployment algorithms. The methodologies presented in this paper address only the issue of preventing deployment in certain environments. The vehicle conditions are critical when developing the threshold of the deployment algorithm. The Rough Road and Abuse tests are an important part of developing this algorithm. With airbag deployment threshold levels being such an important issue in the safety field, the test methods used to simulate real world conditions become an integral aspect to overall airbag development.

Vehicle manufacturers are developing dynamically deploying upper interior head protection systems to provide added occupant protection in lateral crashes. These devices are used to protect the head and neck areas and to prevent ejection from the vehicle. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has established requirements in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 201 [1] for these systems. This paper will discuss testing methodologies in the areas of component testing of curtain-type side airbag systems and full scale side impact testing of a vehicle into a rigid pole. These testing methodologies have been created as a direct result of the development phase of several airbag systems. Prior to pole impact testing, tests have been developed which evaluate these types of systems for characteristics such as inflation time, fill capacity, and how long the system stays inflated during side impact and rollover simulations.

As a result of changing safety regulations, airbag manufacturers and automakers are continually creating and developing new types of airbag systems. These devices are used to afford protection to vehicle occupants in the event of a collision. Recently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) established new requirements for airbags under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 - Occupant Crash Protection [1] and FMVSS 201U - Upper Interior Head Impact Protection [2]. This paper will discuss improved testing equipment and methodologies in the areas of component and full-vehicle testing involving various types of airbags. This work has been the direct result of numerous airbag system development projects currently underway.