Over the years, Ford has created and marketed various cutting-edge safety technologies with the goal of making their vehicles safer for everyone on the road. Now, as part of a joint effort between the automaker and several hospitals and leaders in the safety industry, they're switching their focus to the safety of children.
Ford has developed a prototype pediatric abdominal insert for crash-test research which is intended to help gather more real-life information from crash dummies. The results will help lead to the development of vehicle restraints that will improve the safety of children, Ford says.
Why an abdominal insert? Steve Rouhana, a senior technical leader with Ford's Passive Safety Research and Advanced Engineering Department, explains.
"The major focus has always been on head and chest injuries" he says. "But the lack of an abdomen is not just a matter of priority. We really didn't have the technology before to accurately measure abdominal response."
The experimental device is similar in size and shape to a 6-year old human's abdomen, and is constructed of a silicone shell which is comprised of several layers of liquid silicone. A special LED light and optical sensor inside measure penetration on the insert as a function of how much light is absorbed by the surrounding silicone fluid.
A better understanding of the effects of an impact on a young passenger helps in the automaker's commitment to protect occupants of its vehicles, no matter their size.
photo:Ford
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| Prototype abdominal insert representative of a 6-year-old's abdomen. |
Why an abdominal insert? Steve Rouhana, a senior technical leader with Ford's Passive Safety Research and Advanced Engineering Department, explains.
"The major focus has always been on head and chest injuries" he says. "But the lack of an abdomen is not just a matter of priority. We really didn't have the technology before to accurately measure abdominal response."
The experimental device is similar in size and shape to a 6-year old human's abdomen, and is constructed of a silicone shell which is comprised of several layers of liquid silicone. A special LED light and optical sensor inside measure penetration on the insert as a function of how much light is absorbed by the surrounding silicone fluid.
A better understanding of the effects of an impact on a young passenger helps in the automaker's commitment to protect occupants of its vehicles, no matter their size.
photo:Ford