2015-2016

Driving Analytics: Comparison of Teen and Adult Naturalistic Car-following Patterns (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Helen Loeb, PhD

This study will lead to a better understanding of the adult and teen driver behaviors which lead to crashes, as well as their specific reactions (such as swerving or braking) in emergency situations. The broad long term objective of this study is to quantify the human errors that lead to crashes and assess the potential impact of new active safety systems, such as Forward Collision Warning or Lane Deviation Warning, on driving safety. The study will use…

Pediatric Advanced Automatic Crash Notification (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Ashley Weaver, PhD

This project’s goal is to create scoring systems to better classify motor vehicle crash-related injuries in children. A second goal is to use these scoring systems to develop a refined advanced automatic crash notification (AACN) algorithm and to evaluate its benefit to society. This algorithm is intended to serve as a part of a comprehensive trauma system to deliver children to appropriate treatment facilities. Year 4 of the project will further refine…

Pediatric Advanced Automatic Crash Notification (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Joel Stitzel, PhD

This project’s goal is to create scoring systems to better classify motor vehicle crash-related injuries in children. A second goal is to use these scoring systems to develop a refined advanced automatic crash notification (AACN) algorithm and to evaluate its benefit to society. This algorithm is intended to serve as a part of a comprehensive trauma system to deliver children to appropriate treatment facilities. Year 4 of the project will further refine…

Evaluation of Side Impacts with a Frontal Component for Children in Child Restraint Systems (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Kristy Arbogast, PhD

This project quantifies kinematics and injury metrics for 3 year old anthropomorphic test device (ATD) in oblique side impacts with a focus on assessing the potential for head injury, thus fueling understanding of head injury mechanisms for rear, center-seated occupants. This project, with its focus on an understudied area, will assess the need to prioritize future research and development efforts for car restraint system (CRS) manufacturers in the…

Understanding and Predicting Human Driving Behaviors via Machine Learning Models (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Yi-Ching Lee, PhD

Poor speed management is a key factor in teen driver crashes. In order to inform new training and technology to reduce teen crash risk due to poor speed management, a more complete understanding of this complex driving behavior is needed. Early results from our current CChIPS work indicate that machine learning techniques can be used to model drivers’ speed management behaviors. These techniques have the potential to become part of in-vehicle monitoring…

Compatibility of Belt-positioning Boosters in Vehicles

Principal Investigator: Julie Mansfield, PhD

The broad objective of this research is to increase belt-positioning booster usage for children who are not yet large enough for adult seat belts. This study aims to quantify common compatibility issues which may be prompting poor usage rates of belt-positioning boosters, highlight the strengths and weaknesses of booster compatibility in the market today, and provide benchmark values for manufacturers to reference during design decisions.

Evaluation of Interaction of Inflatable Seat Belts with CRS Installed in Aircraft Seats in Oblique Impact Sled Tests

Principal Investigator: Aditya Belwadi, PhD

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has standards and regulations that are intended to protect aircraft occupants in the event of a crash, yet transport category passenger seats continue to evolve.  The latest development is seats oriented obliquely with respect to the aircraft centerline, which presents a novel loading environment that may permit significant flailing. In addition, the installation of inflatable seatbelts with these seats raises…

Dynamic Top Tether Loads in Various Anchor Locations in Side Impacts

Principal Investigator: Yun Seok Kang, PhD

Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) standardize the method to attach CRS to vehicles without using a seat belt. When properly used, the LATCH system usually protects the child from injuries in MVCs. It has been reported that the top tether has excellent advantages for injury prevention when properly used as compared with the same condition without the top tether attached. However, effectiveness of different top tether locations on dynamics…

Defining Anterior-Posterior Motion of the Shoulder Girdle

Principal Investigator: Laura Boucher, PhD

The overall goal of this project is to investigate the response of the shoulder girdle complex by non-invasively measuring clavicular displacement in 3-4 year old children. These data will be compared to a 3 year-old anthropomorphic test device (ATD) with the goal of providing recommendations for continued improvements in biofidelity of the shoulder, and thus the ability to improve thorax, cervical spine, and head responses in the ATD during frontal…

Validation and Reliability Testing of a New Hybrid III 6-Year-Old Lower Extremity

Principal Investigator: Laura Boucher, PhD

The long-term objective of this project is to create an instrument that will provide researches and engineers the ability to directly evaluate the crash response of the new 6-year-old Hybrid III ATD lower extremity (ATD-LE), providing information on injury mechanism and injury tolerance of the ankle and leg. Additionally, the ATD-LE may also help lead to advances in car restraint system (CRS) design and automotive crash testing. 

Effect of ATD Certification Specification Variance on Full-scale Sled Testing Performance

Principal Investigator: Matthew R. Maltese, PhD

This project enhances our understanding of the regulatory test (FMVSS 213) that governs car restraint system (CRS) performance. The long-term objective of this line of research is to increase the engineering knowledge-base available to industry and researchers on the variability associated with the regulatory test procedures used to certify pediatric safety systems, thereby decreasing the time to bring new technologies to market and thus reducing…

Differences in Injury Outcomes in Children Versus Adults

Principal Investigator: Ashley Weaver, PhD

The Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) is considered the global system of choice for injury data collection and has become the basis for a number of derivative scales in use. However, the AIS is largely based on mortality risk, and there may be age-specific differences in injury outcomes. The specific aim of this study is to identify the specific crash-related injuries that result in varying levels of morbidity and mortality in children, when compared to…

Quantifying CRS Fit in the Vehicle Seat Environment – Focusing on Incompatibilities

Principal Investigator: Amanda Agnew, PhD

Wide varieties of child restraint systems (CRS) and vehicle interior designs suggest that not every CRS can fit seamlessly into every vehicle. Previous work has identified specific areas of incompatibility between a large portion of CRS and vehicles available on the US market. The long-term objective of this study was to improve fitment between CRS and vehicle models by establishing the frequency, severity, and consequences of various incompatibilities.

Quantifying CRS Fit in the Vehicle Seat Environment – Focusing on Incompatibilities

Principal Investigator: Julie Mansfield, PhD

Wide varieties of child restraint systems (CRS) and vehicle interior designs suggest that not every CRS can fit seamlessly into every vehicle. Previous work has identified specific areas of incompatibility between a large portion of CRS and vehicles available on the US market. The long-term objective of this study was to improve fitment between CRS and vehicle models by establishing the frequency, severity, and consequences of various incompatibilities.

Pediatric Brain Injury Assessment in Real World Crashes (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Matthew R. Maltese, PhD

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is the leading pediatric injury in motor vehicle crashes, and an ever-expanding array of safety systems are being developed that have the potential to mitigate TBI. Human body computer models are under development and have the potential to guide the development of such safety systems, but pediatric human body models are limited. In this project, investigators are developing a family of pediatric finite element (FE) brain…

Quantifying CRS Fit in the Vehicle Seat Environment – Digitization Approach (Multiple Year Project)

Principal Investigator: Aditya Belwadi, PhD

Automotive interior design optimization must balance the design of the vehicle seat and occupant space for safety, comfort and aesthetics with the accommodation of add-on restraint products such as child restraint systems (CRS). Important to this balance is understanding the breadth of CRS dimensions, especially as CRS design is constantly changing. Year 2 efforts will build on previous work by creating virtual surrogates of additional CRS types. The…