In the last 10 years car seats have been specifically designed to mitigate short and long-term neck injuries caused by rear end impacts. During this period of time, anti-whiplash seat ratings also have been introduced. Recent research have shown rating methods to correlate to real-life performance. The objective of this study was to describe possible characteristics of real-life good performing anti-whiplash seat designs. To meet the objective, first a real-life data analysis was performed. In total 1111 Folksamand 2630 police reported injuries between 1998 and 2006 were included. Asa result, the redesign of the Saab, Volvo and Toyota seats in the late 90s showed a 50-70% reduction in risk of whiplash symptoms for more than 1 month. Secondly, a rating test series with Saab, Volvo and Toyota seats before and after the anti-whiplash redesign were performed. Also, published rating performances of seats with these designs were analyzed. Well-designed seats showed good performance in dynamic rating tests, especially for the low and medium severity pulses, through designs aimed at reducing head-to-head restraint distance and yielding energy absorption of the seat. For the covering abstract see ITRD E141762.
Abstract