Biokinetics has worked in the area of transportation safety for many years. Developments in seat belt performance measurement, harmonization of international automotive safety standards and automotive crash performance investigations have all been part of Biokinetics’ work in this area. Our clients include federal regulating bodies in Canada and the USA as well as major automotive safety research institutes. The following project descriptions give details on some of the work which Biokinetics has carried out in the area of transportation safety.

Fuel Tank Systems

There has been much controversy over the fuel tank location in late model pickup trucks. The truck model years in question have the fuel tank mounted between the vehicle frame rails and the exterior body. Testing has shown that when this vehicle is struck in the side by another vehicle, the fuel tank is highly susceptible to damage that may lead to fuel leakage and the increased potential for post-crash fires.

Click image to enlarge.

Biokinetics was contracted to investigate the possibility of retrofitting an alternative fuel tank system in these pickup trucks that would improve on the existing tank’s crashworthiness. During this work, six new and existing fuel tank systems were designed and/or identified as alternatives to the OEM tank. These retrofit options included installing stronger gas tanks, providing protection to the existing tank or relocating the tanks to safer locations. Each of the systems identified was installed in a truck and subjected to a full-scale side impact crash test. The two most promising alternative tank systems were developed further and subjected to a variety of standard and non-standard vehicle crash tests at normal and elevated crash speeds. Refinement of the tank systems continued throughout the testing and evaluation process that comprised a total of 18 full-scale impact crash tests.

Belt Fit Assessment with the new ASPECT Mannequin (HPM-II)

The Belt-fit Test Device (BTD) presently used to quantify belt fit for different vehicle interior geometry and belt anchorage locations is based on the Society of Automotive Engineers SAE J826 H-point mannequin which is expected to be replaced by the new ASPECT mannequin over the next few years. This new mannequin, identified as the HPM-II, was developed by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) in conjunction with the Automotive Seat and Package Evaluation and Comparison Tools (ASPECT) Industry Advisory Panel (IAP) and the SAE Human Accommodations and Design Devices Committee.

Since the current H-point mannequin will be phased out, Transport Canada initiated a co-operative development program with Biokinetics and UMTRI to implement the BTD capabilities with the ASPECT mannequin. During the first phase of this project, new hardware components compatible with the ASPECT device were developed for Transport Canada based on belt fit data acquired over the years. These new BTD components consist essentially of thoracic and pelvic body forms with appropriate means of attachment to the ASPECT mannequin. Following appropriate validation studies, the new device will allow the assessment of belt fit and improvement of occupant restraint systems for years to come.

Electronic Belt Fit Compliance

A quantitative measure of seat belt fit was first achieved with the BTD, or Belt fit Test Device, developed by Biokinetics for Transport Canada. The electronic Belt Fit Test Device (eBTD), which has been developed by Human Solutions in collaboration with the Joint Working Group on Abdominal Injury Reduction, has undergone considerable development over the past few years. The eBTD, as an alternative measurement tool, should provide the same BTD scores as the physical BTD that it is designed to replace. The purpose of the eBTD is to allow manufacturers to certify the belt fit compliance of a vehicle using CAD design data before the vehicle is built.

In association with Transport Canada, Biokinetics is currently evaluating the latest revision of the software to assure that similar results are obtained with both systems prior to approval of the eBTD for compliance testing. The introduction of such tools will be extremely valuable to assist in the design of safer seat belt systems.