This paper reviews some of the current issues in the use of biomechanics for assessing and regulating the crashworthiness of vehicles. It is for the nonspecialist and thus avoids many detailed topics presently being researched. The ad hoc evolution of the FMVSS 200 series of standards is summarised, emphasizing how single point pass/fail criteria have become institutionalised. This technique is questioned by reference to data on frequencies of exposures to specific blunt impacts. Problems with the interpretation of human response using physical dummies are reviewed briefly for the main body regions. It is concluded that a fundamental and wide ranging review of the current methods of assessing vehicle crashworthiness in the light of changing biomechanical knowledge would be timely. The recognition of variation in human response to crash forces must be incorporated into future rule-making as reflected in evolving biomechanical knowledge, if protection for the actual population at risk in real world crashes is to be optimized.
Abstract