The first part of this paper presents the results of dynamic tests. Rearward facing child seats were tested in combination with passenger air bags. The tests show that the dummy accelerations will reach very high levels, and that some child seats will disintegrate. The paper also discusses possible countermeasures. The second part of the paper deals with the risk of out-of-position passengers in collisions with roadside safety devices. The requirements for these safety features that are now being developed in Europe and the United States are based on the assumption that passengers are not using seatbelts. These requirements will encourage the development of systems with a low g-level at the beginning of the collision in order to let the unbelted occupants hit the dashboard with a low impact speed. During this phase the air bag will probably not deploy. When the passenger is in contact with the instrument panel the g-levels will be allowed to increase and the air bag will deploy. This is obviously a dangerous situation. The paper discusses the present state of these requirements and the problems with air bag use in these situations.
Abstract