Mexican Media Brands
New Crash Test Dummy Packs on the Pounds
A typical adult crash test dummy weighs about 170 lbs and has a body mass index around 24.
Share
A typical adult crash test dummy weighs about 170 lbs and has a body mass index around 24. Yet one-third of Americans are considered obese, meaning they have a BMI of at least 30, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That's why crash dummy supplier Humanetics Innovative Solutions Inc. will add a hefty 273-lb dummy to its lineup next year. The new dummy has a BMI of 35.
Humanetics CEO Chris O'Connor cites data from the California-Berkeley Safe Transportation and Research Education Center that indicates an obese person is 78% more likely to be killed in a crash than an average-weight person.
O'Connor notes that carmakers are still using test dummies created in the 1980s when average adults weighed less. But safety experts notes that airbags and seatbelts are designed for average-weight people. Overweight passengers have larger midsections and buttocks, which move them forward and out of the optimal position for seatbelts.
RELATED CONTENT
-
Multiple Choices for Light, High-Performance Chassis
How carbon fiber is utilized is as different as the vehicles on which it is used. From full carbon tubs to partial panels to welded steel tube sandwich structures, the only limitation is imagination.
-
GM Develops a New Electrical Platform
GM engineers create a better electrical architecture that can handle the ever-increasing needs of vehicle systems
-
Cobots: 14 Things You Need to Know
What jobs do cobots do well? How is a cobot programmed? What’s the ROI? We asked these questions and more to four of the leading suppliers of cobots.
