Improve Safety Balance between Women and Men in Frontal Crashes through Parametric Human Modeling and Adaptive Design...

Area of Science:

• Biomechanical Engineering
• Automotive Safety
• Computational Modeling

Background:

• Previous research indicates sex-based disparities in injury risks during frontal crashes.
• These differences may stem from variations in body size, anatomy, and posture.
• Optimizing vehicle restraints is crucial for mitigating these disparities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop diverse human body models (HBMs) representing a wide range of male and female body types.
• To conduct population-based frontal crash simulations using these HBMs.
• To explore adaptive restraint designs for enhanced safety and reduced injury risk differences between sexes.

Main Methods:

• Generated 200 HBMs via mesh-morphing techniques.
• Performed 1,000 frontal crash simulations using an automated framework.
• Developed a surrogate model using Gaussian Process (GP) for design optimization.
• Utilized two optimization schemes to minimize population injury risks and sex-based differences.

Main Results:

• Adaptive restraint designs, including seatbelt and airbag adjustments, are sensitive to crash severity (Delta-V).
• Optimal strategies involve higher seatbelt load limits, increased airbag inflation, and specific steering column forces for higher BMI occupants.
• Adaptive designs reduced population injury probability by up to 38.8% and significantly decreased sex-based injury risk differences.
• A sex-balanced restraint strategy maintained similar injury risks for male and female drivers.

Conclusions:

• This study pioneers the integration of crash simulations and adaptive restraint optimization for balanced occupant safety.
• Gaussian process modeling proved effective as a surrogate for finite element simulations.
• Adaptive restraint systems show promise in reducing overall injury risks and promoting equitable safety for diverse populations.