Estimated potential of human drivers and automatic braking to prevent frontal crashes based on headlight visibility.

Objective: In 2021; half of crash fatalities occurred at night when some road users, like pedestrians, are particularly vulnerable. Automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems can avoid or mitigate collisions by automatically applying the brakes, but their performance may be hindered in low lighting. The purpose of this study was to estimate the proportion of real-world crashes where headlights could provide enough visibility for the driver or AEB system to detect and avoid the collision.

Pedestrian automatic emergency braking responses to a stationary or crossing adult mannequin during the day and night.

Objective: Automatic emergency braking systems with pedestrian detection (PAEB) are effective at preventing pedestrian crashes, but the safety benefits are not observed at night. This study used the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) PAEB test data to characterize PAEB responses in different lighting conditions and for different rated systems.

Methods: Data from 6,919 IIHS PAEB tests were retrieved from IIHS databases.

Comparison of frontal crash compatibility metrics between battery-electric and internal-combustion-engine passenger vehicles.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine if there are any emerging issues related to battery-electric vehicles' (BEVs') geometry, force distribution, and extra weight that may make them more aggressive partners in front-to-front crashes through comparisons of stiffness metrics derived from crash tests.

Methods: We examined load cell wall data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA's) New Car Assessment Program full-width frontal crash test at 56 km/h. Fourteen BEVs, ranging in class from small cars to large SUVs, were compared with 92 internal-combustion-engine (ICE) vehicles, ranging in class from small cars to midsize pickups.

How can front crash prevention systems address more police-reported crashes in the United States?

Government and consumer-information organizations can motivate automakers to address additional crash types through front crash prevention (FCP) testing programs. This study examined the current state of crashes potentially relevant to current and future FCP systems to provide a roadmap for the next crash types that vehicle testing programs in the United States should evaluate. Crash records from 2016 to 2020 were extracted from the Crash Report Sampling System (CRSS) and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).

Characteristics of automatic emergency braking responses in passenger vehicles evaluated in the IIHS front crash prevention program.

Researchers can estimate the potential safety benefits of front crash prevention (FCP) systems by simulating system performance in rear-end crash scenarios reported to police or captured during naturalistic driving. Data to support assumptions about FCP systems in production vehicles, particularly automatic emergency braking (AEB), are limited. This study used detailed information from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's (IIHS's) FCP evaluation to characterize interventions in vehicles that performed well (superior-rated vehicles) and those that did not perform as well (basic/advanced-rated vehicles) when approaching a stationary surrogate vehicle on a test track at 20 and 40 km/h, and estimated performance in similar conditions at higher speeds.

Investigation of factors influencing submarining mitigation with child booster seats.

Objective: Automobile booster seats are intended to improve belt fit for children that are too large for a harness-style child restraint, but not yet big enough to fit properly in an adult seat belt. Our objective was to prospectively study the relationship between booster seat design and interaction with the seat belt (specifically, submarining risk) for a child occupant using computer simulation of automobile crash events.

Methods: Frontal-impact simulations were performed with a 6-year-old child human body model.

Injury risks and crashworthiness benefits for females and males: Which differences are physiological?

Objective: Previous research has found elevated injury risk for females relative to males in passenger vehicle crashes but has not accounted for ways the crashes themselves differ between these populations. Vehicle curb weight, ride height, safety rating, airbag deployment, and crash configuration all influence injury outcome and often are not well-represented by delta-V alone. This study evaluated the effect of occupant sex on injury risk in front and side crashes while limiting or controlling for non-physiological crash differences.

Factors contributing to serious and fatal injuries in belted rear seat occupants in frontal crashes.

Earlier research has shown that the rear row is safer for occupants in crashes than the front row, but there is evidence that improvements in front seat occupant protection in more recent vehicle model years have reduced the safety advantage of the rear seat versus the front seat. The study objective was to identify factors that contribute to serious and fatal injuries in belted rear seat occupants in frontal crashes in newer model year vehicles. A case series review of belted rear seat occupants who were seriously injured or killed in frontal crashes was conducted.

Fatal side impact crash scenarios for rear seat and seat belt-restrained occupants from vulnerable populations.

Previous studies have revealed vulnerability of school-age children and older adults in rear seats in motor vehicle crashes. Detailed information about crashes in which these fatalities occur could help improve vehicle and restraint design. Police accident reports were obtained for crashes from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System data set.

Passenger use of and attitudes toward rear seat belts.

Objectives: This study sought to identify attitudes toward belt use in the rear seat and to gain insight into the experiences of rear-seat passengers.

Method: A telephone survey conducted between June and August 2016 targeted adult passengers who had recently ridden in the rear and who did not always wear their seat belt when doing so. Respondents were questioned regarding their reasons for not buckling up and possible conditions under which they would be more likely to buckle up during rear-seat travel.

Assessing tether anchor labeling and usability in pickup trucks.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate vehicle factors associated with child restraint tether use and misuse in pickup trucks and evaluate 4 labeling interventions designed to educate consumers on proper tether use.

Methods: Volunteer testing was performed with 24 subjects and 4 different pickup trucks. Each subject performed 8 child restraint installations among the 4 pickups using 2 forward-facing restraints: a Britax Marathon G4.

Effects of an integrated collision warning system on teenage driver behavior.

Introduction: Crash warning systems have been shown to provide safety benefits, but no studies have examined how teenagers respond. This study sought to find out whether young, inexperienced drivers change behavior in response to warnings.

Methods: Forty 16-17 year-olds drove an instrumented vehicle equipped with a system that warned for lane departures and potential rear-end and lane change/merge crashes.

Vehicle characteristics associated with LATCH use and correct use in real-world child restraint installations.

Introduction: The objective of this study was to determine if vehicle features associated with LATCH ease-of-use in laboratory studies with volunteers predict LATCH use and misuse in real-world child restraint installations.

Method: Vehicle characteristics were extracted from prior surveys of more than 100 top-selling 2010-13 vehicles. Use and correct use of LATCH was determined from records of more than 14,000 child restraint installations in these vehicles that were inspected by child passenger safety technicians at Safe Kids car seat checkup events during 2010-12.

Rear seat safety: Variation in protection by occupant, crash and vehicle characteristics.

Objectives: Current information on the safety of rear row occupants of all ages is needed to inform further advances in rear seat restraint system design and testing. The objectives of this study were to describe characteristics of occupants in the front and rear rows of model year 2000 and newer vehicles involved in crashes and determine the risk of serious injury for restrained crash-involved rear row occupants and the relative risk of fatal injury for restrained rear row vs. front passenger seat occupants by age group, impact direction, and vehicle model year.

Factors affecting tether use and correct use in child restraint installations.

Introduction: Field studies show that top tethers go unused in half of forward-facing child restraint installations.

Method: In this study, parent volunteers were asked to use the Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH) to install child restraints in several vehicles to identify tether anchor characteristics that are associated with tether use. Thirty-seven volunteers were assigned to four groups.

Use of top tethers with forward-facing child restraints: observations and driver interviews.

Objective: Despite the safety benefits, many parents do not use top tethers with forward-facing child restraints. Detailed information was collected about why parents are not using tethers.

Methods: The sample included 479 drivers who had forward-facing child restraints installed in passenger vehicles equipped with tether anchors.

Relationship between pedestrian headform tests and injury and fatality rates in vehicle-to-pedestrian crashes in the United States.

Pedestrian protection evaluations have been developed to encourage vehicle front-end designs that mitigate the consequences of vehicle-to-pedestrian crashes. The European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP) evaluates pedestrian head protection with impacts against vehicle hood, windshield, and A-pillars. The Global Technical Regulation No.

Vehicle LATCH system features associated with correct child restraint installations.

Objective: Lower anchors and tethers for children (LATCH) was intended to standardize the attachment between child restraints and vehicle seats. However, LATCH implementations vary, resulting in differences in ease of attachment of child restraint connectors. Identifying vehicle characteristics associated with correct child restraint installations can provide guidance for designing vehicle LATCH systems that increase correct child restraint installations.

Effects of booster seat laws on injury risk among children in crashes.

Objective: Belt-positioning booster seats have been shown to reduce injury risk among child passengers aged 4 to 8 in motor vehicle crashes. To encourage the use of booster seats, many states have enacted laws that require the use of either a child restraint with internal harness or a belt-positioning booster seat, but the specific age range covered by the laws varies by state. Previous studies have found evidence that booster seat laws are effective in reducing injury risk among children, but these studies primarily have included states with younger age requirements (e.

Crash avoidance potential of four large truck technologies.

Objectives: The objective of this paper was to estimate the maximum potential large truck crash reductions in the United States associated with each of four crash avoidance technologies: side view assist, forward collision warning/mitigation, lane departure warning/prevention, and vehicle stability control. Estimates accounted for limitations of current systems.

Methods: Crash records were extracted from the 2004-08 files of the National Automotive Sampling System General Estimates System (NASS GES) and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).

Observed use of tethers in forward-facing child restraint systems.

Background: Use of top tethers with forward-facing child restraints is a simple way for parents to keep their children safer when travelling in passenger vehicles, but tether use remains low.

Objectives: To obtain an updated estimate of top tether use.

Methods: Data on forward-facing child restraints were collected through an observational survey in the Washington DC metropolitan area during July-August 2010.

Crash avoidance potential of four passenger vehicle technologies.

Objectives: The objective was to update estimates of maximum potential crash reductions in the United States associated with each of four crash avoidance technologies: side view assist, forward collision warning/mitigation, lane departure warning/prevention, and adaptive headlights. Compared with previous estimates (Farmer, 2008), estimates in this study attempted to account for known limitations of current systems.

Methods: Crash records were extracted from the 2004-08 files of the National Automotive Sampling System General Estimates System (NASS GES) and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).

Abdominal injuries in belt-positioning booster seats.

Previous studies have demonstrated that booster seats reduce the risk of abdominal injuries by improving the fit of the seat belt on young children and encouraging better posture and compatibility with the vehicle seat. Recently, several studies have reported cases of abdominal injuries in booster seated children questioning the protective effects of these restraints. The objective of this study was to examine cases of abdominal injuries in booster seated children through parametric modeling to gain a thorough understanding of the injury causation scenarios.