Thoracolumbar spine kinematics and injuries in frontal impacts with reclined occupants

Richardson, Rachel; Jayathirtha, Mohan; Chastain, Kalle; Donlon, John-Paul; Forman, Jason; Gepner, Bronisław; Östling, Martin; Mroz, Krystoffer; Shaw, Greg; Pipkorn, Bengt; Kerrigan, Jason

doi:10.1080/15389588.2020.1837365

Cited by 20 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…This is consistent with other numerical studies (e.g. [ 5 ]), and the first PMHS data in reclined conditions (L1 fracture observed on 3 PMHS out of 5 in Richardson et al [ 14 ]). These forces increased by 2.1kN between the Baseline and the SP25 Upright positions (Pulse #2).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…Both are freely available online ( www.piper-project.org ). Model positioning was performed using the pre-positioning module, with modification of the pelvis and spine positions to match PMHS initial positions (67, 56, 59, 50, 32, 17 degrees for the pelvis, L3, L1, T11, T8, and T1 angles, respectively) [ 14 ]. The flesh material density was decreased to reach the average PMHS mass.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of seat pan and pelvis angles on the occupant response in a reclined position during a frontal crash

et al. 2021

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Current highly automated vehicle concepts include reclined seat layouts that could allow occupants to relax during the drive. The main objective of this study was to investigate the effects of seat pan and pelvis angles on the kinematics and injury risk of a reclined occupant by numerical simulation of a frontal sled test. The occupant, represented by a detailed 50th percentile male human body model, was positioned on a semi-rigid seat. Three seat pan angles (5, 15, and 25 degrees from the horizontal) were used, all with a seatback angle of 40 degrees from the vertical. Three pelvis angles (60, 70, and 80 degrees from the vertical), representing a nominal and two relaxed sitting positions, were used for each seat pan angle. The model was restrained using a pre-inflated airbag and a three-point seatbelt equipped with a pretensioner and a load limiter before being subjected to two frontal crash pulses. Both model kinematic response and predicted injury risk were affected by the seat pan and the pelvis angles in a reclined seatback position. Submarining occurrence and injury risk increased with lower seat pan angle, higher pelvis angle, and acceleration pulse severity. In some cases (in particular for a 15 degrees seat pan), a small variation in seat pan or pelvis angle resulted in large differences in terms of kinematics and predicted injury. This study highlights the potential effects of the seat pan and pelvis angles for reclined occupant protection. These parameters should be assessed experimentally with volunteers to determine which combinations are most likely to be adopted for comfort and with post mortem human surrogates to confirm their significance during impact and to provide data for model validation. The sled and restraint models used in this study are provided under an open-source license to facilitate further comparisons.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of seat pan and pelvis angles on the occupant response in a reclined position during a frontal crash

et al. 2021

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“…The literature-based knowledge focuses only on lumbar spine injuries and submarining. Nowadays, there are a variety of means to mitigate submarining and, hence, mitigate the severity of the lumbar spine injury [8,16,49,54,59,67]. However, as it appeared during this study, even if submarining does not occur, the body kinetics on a reclined seat can be hazardous in terms of neck injuries.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 76%

“…Considering the preliminary nature of this research, as well as the fact that it is to be repeated with volunteers, the generated pulses were relatively low. In general, the volunteer tests are performed in the range of 2.5-5 g. For this reason, the crash pulse was approximated to 3-5 g. Greater crash pulse can constitute a hazard for the human body [16,28]. The values in seatback angle and crash pulse acceleration, as well as the corresponding change of velocity, are shown in Table 1.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The most severe and commonly investigated factor occurring in a frontal crash with a reclined seat is submarining-i.e., the occupant's hips sliding under the lap belt, restraining the body at the abdomen [12][13][14]. Submarining causes severe injuries to the lumbar spine and internal organs [15][16][17][18][19]. Accident data analysis shows that the submarining phenomenon is the reason for many fatalities and serious injuries during a frontal impact [20][21][22].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Influence of a Passenger Position Seating on Recline Seat on a Head Injury during a Frontal Crash

Górniak

Matla

Górniak

et al. 2022

Sensors

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Presently, most passive safety tests are performed with a precisely specified seat position and carefully seated ATD (anthropomorphic test device) dummies. Facing the development of autonomous vehicles, as well as the need for safety verification during crashes with various seat positions such research is even more urgently needed. Apart from the numerical environment, the existing testing equipment is not validated to perform such an investigation. For example, ATDs are not validated for nonstandard seatback positions, and the most accurate method of such research is volunteer tests. The study presented here was performed on a sled test rig utilizing a 50cc Hybrid III dummy according to a full factorial experiment. In addition, input factors were selected in order to verify a safe test condition for surrogate testing. The measured value was head acceleration, which was used for calculation of a head injury criterion. What was found was an optimal seat angle −117°—at which the head injury criteria had the lowest represented value. Moreover, preliminary body dynamics showed a danger of whiplash occurrence for occupants in a fully-reclined seat.

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Human Lumbar Spine Injury Risk in Dynamic Combined Compression and Flexion Loading

et al. 2023

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Thoracolumbar spine kinematics and injuries in frontal impacts with reclined occupants

Abstract: Table A1: Overview of the five tests Test S0529 S0530 S0531 S0532 S0533 Subject No. 1 2 3 4 5 Age (yrs) 66 53 72 25 55 Cause of Death Dementia Glioblastoma Sepsis Gun-shot wound to head Myocardial infarction Height (cm) 175 175 185 174 180 Weight (kg) 74 57 74 75 74

Cited by 20 publications

References 13 publications

Effects of seat pan and pelvis angles on the occupant response in a reclined position during a frontal crash

Effects of seat pan and pelvis angles on the occupant response in a reclined position during a frontal crash

Influence of a Passenger Position Seating on Recline Seat on a Head Injury during a Frontal Crash

Human Lumbar Spine Injury Risk in Dynamic Combined Compression and Flexion Loading

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