EVALUATION OF EFFECTIVENESS OF DOOR LOCKS ON PRE-1956 AND POST-1955 AUTOMOBILES

THE HAZARD ASSOCIATED WITH OCCUPANT EJECTION DURING AN ACCIDENT HAS BEEN DESCRIBED. IN THIS PAPER, DATA FROM RURAL INJURY-PRODUCING ACCIDENTS WERE EXAMINED TO EVALUATE EFFECTIVENESS OF SAFETY DOOR LOCKS USED BY AMERICAN AUTOMOBILE MANUFACTURERS SINCE 1956. FINDINGS INDICATED A SUBSTANTIAL DECREASE IN FREQUENCY OF DOOR OPENING (32.8 PERCENT), OCCUPANT EJECTION (39.6 PERCENT), AND DANGEROUS-FATAL INJURIES (11.6 PERCENT). IT WAS ESTIMATED THAT IF NO DOORS OPENED, THE POTENTIAL REDUCTION IN DANGEROUS AND FATAL INJURIES WOULD BE APPROXIMATELY 27 PERCENT, AND THAT SAFETY DOOR LOCKS HAD ACHIEVED ABOUT 32 PERCENT OF THE POTENTIAL REDUCTION. THE SAVINGS IN HUMAN LIVES IF ALL CARS HAD BEEN EQUIPPED WITH THESE LOCKS WAS CALCULATED TO BE ABOUT 1,800 ANNUALLY. AT THAT TIME, THE SAVINGS AMOUNTED TO PERHAPS 800 LIVES, SINCE MANY PRE-1956 CARS WERE STILL IN USE.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00902918
• Authors:
  • GARRETT, J W
• Publication Date: 1962-5

Media Info

• Serial:
  • Public Health Reports
  • Publisher: U.S. Public Health Service
  • ISSN: 0090-2918
  • Serial URL: http://www.publichealthreports.org/index.cfm

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Doors; Ejection; Fatalities; Injuries; Locks (Waterways); Rural areas
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00224151
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Automotive Crash Injury Research
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 20 1973 12:00AM