Pedestrian-Vehicle Accident: Analysis of 4 Full Scale Tests with PMHS

In industrialized nations, more than 25% of road traffic fatalities concern pedestrians. In some large urban areas, pedestrians account for as much as 40 to 50 percent of traffic casualties. To investigate pedestrian impact requirements for regulation in Europe, four full-scale pedestrian impact experiments were performed on embalmed post mortem human subjects (PMHS). Two impacts were conducted in a standard condition with the PMHS laterally at the center line of the vehicle with the struck-side limb positioned anteriorly. The 2 other tests were a reconstruction of two real accidents and the PMHS were hit by the vehicle front laterally from ¾ right. Each PMHS was instrumented to measure the acceleration at points along the lower limb, the pelvis, the head. Pedestrian height being an important factor in the type of injuries sustained, the vehicle profile in relation to pedestrian height was recorded. After each test, a necropsy of each PMHS revealed the injuries to the tested PMHS. The distribution of vehicle contact areas and throw distance were noted. Because the head and lower limbs are the most commonly injured body parts for adult pedestrians, with head injury being the main cause of fatality, the analysis was focussed on these two body parts. The kinematics response of the pedestrian surrogates head was measured using precisely located targets. In particular, head velocity and head impact angle on the windscreen have at the instant of the impact been evaluated. The results provide complementary data for future pedestrian test methods and biofidelity assessment of a pedestrian dummy.

• Record URL:
  http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/departments/esv/20th/
• Corporate Authors:

  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Masson, Catherine
  • Serre, Thierry
  • Cesari, Dominique
• Conference:
  • 20th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV)
  • Location: Lyon , France
  • Date: 2007-6-18 to 2007-6-21
• Publication Date: 2007

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 8p
• Monograph Title: 20th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV)

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Casualties; Crash injuries; Crash reconstruction; Crash tests; Dummies; Fatalities; Head; Lower extremities; Pedestrian vehicle crashes
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors; I80: Accident Studies;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01576378
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 07-0428
• Files: TRIS, ATRI, USDOT
• Created Date: Sep 25 2015 4:19PM