| COMBINING CRASH RECORDER AND PAIRED COMPARISON TECHNIQUE: INJURY RISK FUNCTIONS IN FRONTAL AND REAR IMPACTS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO NECK INJURIES
Knowledge from real-world crashes is important in the design of a crashworthy road transportation system. Such design must be based on the human injury tolerance limits. Links between impact severity and injury outcome are important and could be used in order to achieve such tolerance limits. Traditionally impact severity has been calculated with retrospective reconstruction technique, although recently, injury risk functions have been presented where impact severity has been measured with crash pulse recorders.
The aims of this paper were to present injury risk functions, with special reference to neck injuries, calculated with crash recorder and paired comparison technique, and to propose a way of combining the two methods. By combining comprehensive statistical material with in depth crash recorder information, injury risk functions for injuries to different body regions were established. Risk functions for AIS1 neck injuries both in frontal and rear-end impacts have also been established.
It was found that the data from the crash pulse recorder generated risk functions could be used to validate and calibrate risk functions based on the matched-paired technique. Moreover, it was found that the shape of the injury risk curves differed significantly for injuries to different body regions. It was also found that the neck injury risk differed significantly for frontal and rear-end impacts.
It is concluded, that adding new techniques to the existing techniques based on reconstruction can further refine generating risk functions. The injury risks found are important for the understanding of injury tolerance limits for injuries to different body regions, but also for the understanding of injury mechanisms for different injury types.
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ESTIMATING CRASH SEVERITY: CAN EVENT DATA RECORDERS REPLACE CRASH RECONSTRUCTION?
The primary description of crash severity in most crash databases is vehicle delta-V. Delta-V has been traditionally estimated through crash reconstruction techniques using computer codes, e.g. Crash3 and WinSmash. Unfortunately, delta-V is notoriously difficult to estimate in many types of collisions including sideswipes, collisions with narrow objects, angled side impacts, and rollovers. Indeed, approximately 50% of all delta-V estimates in the National Automotive Sampling System / Crashworthiness Data System (NASS/CDS) 2000 are reported as unknown.
The Event Data Recorders (EDRs), now being installed as standard equipment by several automakers, have the potential to provide an independent measurement of crash severity, which avoids many of the difficulties of crash reconstruction techniques. This paper evaluates the feasibility of replacing delta-V estimates from crash reconstruction with the delta-V computed from EDRs. The analysis is based on 225 NASS/CDS cases from 1999 - 2001, which have corresponding EDR datasets. The potential of extracting manual seat belt use from EDRs is also discussed and compared with the corresponding results from NASS/CDS gathered by crash investigators. Although EDRs are expected to greatly enhance the investigation of a crash, it should be noted however that current EDRs are not perfect. The paper discusses the limitations of current EDR technology and the need for enhancement of future Event Data Recorders.
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Kinetic Energy Press Announces Publication of Major New Manual on Energy And Momentum in Accident Reconstruction
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PROFITABLE PAPER ACCIDENTSÂ
by Robert L Stanton, Director
N H Insurance Fraud Unit
Insurance is an intangible commodity where the purchaser will receive nothing in return for paying the premium, unless that person presents a claim. For that reason, it is called an aleatory contract, meaning that money is paid for protection against an uncertain event. But what happens when a person pays the premium, knowing full well that a calculated event will occur, shortly after the policy inception date? What if it happens over and over again and it totals into and beyond the million-dollar range? The game is obviously insurance fraud.
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MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT CAUSE FACTORS AND IDENTIFICATION OF COUNTERMEASURES
VOLUME I: TECHNICAL REPORT
Three specific areas were set as objectives in this research: (1) The causes of motorcycle accidents and injuries need to be determined so that all contributions of the motorcycle rider, car driver, roadway features, and motorcycle design are defined, (2) The effectiveness of safety helmets and other protective equipment must be determined because the motorcycle rider has no crash protection unless it is being worn on the body, and (3) Countermeasures must be determined which will prevent motorcycle accidents and reduce injuries.
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The year has already begun with many exciting new things happening. We just finished our 3rd CDR User's Conference in Houston, TX. This conference sold out with 270 participants, making this the largest conference we have hosted to date. We also shipped Volume 2, Issue 2 of Collision Magazine in late December. This issue turned out to be quite a bit bigger than we expected with feature articles, ARC-CSI 2007 conference DVD and many other features. We are now working on prepping for Volume 3, Issue 1 of Collision and also finalizing schedules and crashes for this year's ARC-CSI Crash Conference.
Each month the ARC Network tries to figure out what new features, new research, new promotion, basically new things you would like to see added to or improved upon in the ARC Network. We call this the "Value Add" to being a part of the ARC Network. The only problem with value add is that it is in the eye of the user. What we might think is valuable to you, may not actually be considered valuable or useful. To take the guess work out, we are creating a quick survey that will help us develop areas of the ARC Network that are valuable and useful to you. As a thank you for completing this quick survey, we will either extend your current ARC membership 2 free months or, if you are a new member, give you a 2-month free trial membership. This survey will be emailed to the Newsletter Database the week of February 25, 2008.
We are now accepting early registration for the 2008 ARC-CSI Crash Conference. This is the annual crash conference held in Las Vegas and includes fully instrumented crash testing and speaker presentations. This year the crash testing will include, pedestrian crashes, motorcycle crashes, rollover, PIT maneuver crashes, and car-to-car. We will also have industry leaders speaking on a variety of topics and 3 workshops to sharpen your skills in pedestrian accident reconstruction, rollovers and motorcycles.
>> Click here for complete information and to register
 The ARC Network has completed importing the rest of the motorcycle specs to the online motorcycle database located in the members only section of the ARC Network. This database now has data for over 3800 motorcycles covering Aprilia, Benelli, Beta, Bimoto, BMW, Buell, Cagiva, Ducati, Harley Davidson, Honda, Husaberg, Husqvarna, Hyosung, Kawasaki, KTM, Laverda, Moto Guzzi, MV Augusta, Suzuki, Triumph and Yamaha. The motorcycle specs database is free to use for all ARC Network members.
In an effort to communicate information regarding Crash Data Retrieval, I Got Hit LLC (sister company to the ARC Network) is currently developing a quarterly CDR newsletter. We are looking for volunteers to provide content such as case studies, pictures, tech tips, news, legislation, etc. If you are interested in participating, please email Scott Baker
Collision Publishing LLC is currently working on Volume 3, Issue 1 of Collision: The International Compendium for Crash Research. If you have an article you would like included in this issue or a future issue, please email it to Collision Publishing.
If you would like to subscribe to Collision or purchase any of the back issues, please visit www.collisionpublishing.com or ask your local accident reconstruction organization if the are an industry partner with Collision for a discounted subscription.
Thank you for supporting the ARC Network and subscribing to the Accident Reconstruction Newsletter.
Scott Baker
President
ARC Network LLC
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Biomechanics of Side Impact: Injury Criteria, Aging Occupants, and
Airbag Technology
This paper presents a survey of side impact trauma-related biomedical investigations with specific reference to certain aspects of epidemiology relating to the growing elderly population, improvements in technology such as side airbags geared toward occupant safety, and development
of injury criteria. The first part is devoted to the involvement of the elderly by identifying variables contributing to injury including impact severity, human factors, and national and international field data. This is followed by a survey of various experimental models used in the development of injury criteria and tolerance limits. The effects of fragility of the elderly coupled with physiological changes (e.g., visual, musculoskeletal) that may lead to an abnormal seating position (termed out-of-position)
especially for the driving population are discussed. Fundamental biomechanical parameters such as thoracic, abdominal and pelvic forces; upper and lower spinal and sacrum accelerations; and upper, middle and lower chest deflections under various initial impacting conditions are evaluated. Secondary variables such as the thoracic trauma index and pelvic acceleration (currently adopted in the United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards), peak chest deflection, and viscous criteria are also included in the survey. The importance of performing research studies with specific focus on out-of-position scenarios of the elderly and using the most commonly available torso side airbag as the initial contacting condition in lateral impacts for occupant injury assessment is emphasized.
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ANALYSIS OF OCCUPANT PROTECTION STRATEGIES IN TRAIN COLLISIONS
David C. Tyrell Kristine J. Severson Brian P. Marquis
A study of the occupant dynamics and predicted fatalities due to secondary impact for passengers involved in train collisions with impact speeds up to 140 mph is described. The principal focus is on the effectiveness of alternative strategies for protecting occupants in train collisions, including
friendly interior arrangements and occupant restraints.
Head Injury Criteria (HIC), chest deceleration, and axial neck load were used to evaluate interior performance; the probability of fatality resulting from secondary impacts was evaluated for each of the interior configurations and restraint systems modeled based on these criteria.
The results indicate that compartmentalization can be as effective as a lap belt in minimizing probability of fatality for the 50th percentile male simulated. Compartmentalization is an occupant protection strategy that requires seats or restraining barriers to be positioned in a manner that provides a compact, cushioned protection zone surrounding each occupant. When occupants are allowed to travel large distances before impacting the interior, restrained occupants have a much greater chance of survival. Fatalities from secondary impacts are not expected in any of the scenarios modeled if the occupant is restrained with a lap belt and shoulder harness.
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THE ROLE OF DRIVER DISTRACTION IN TRAFFIC CRASHES
Prepared by Jane C. Stutts, Ph.D. Donald W. Reinfurt, Ph.D. Loren Staplin, Ph.D. Eric A. Rodgman, B.S. University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center Chapel Hill, NC
Driver inattention is a major contributor to highway crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that approximately 25% of police-reported crashes involve some form of driver inattention - the driver is distracted, asleep or fatigued, or otherwise "lost in thought" (Wang, Knipling and Goodman, 1996; Ranney, Mazzae, Garrott and Goodman, 2000). Estimates from other sources are as high as 35-50% (Sussman, Bishop, Madnick and Walter, 1995; NHTSA, 1997).
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (AAAFTS) is committed to educating the public about issues affecting safety on the roadway. A contract was awarded to the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center to conduct research on "The Role of Driver Distraction in Traffic Crashes." The goal of the project is to identify the major sources of distraction to drivers and the relative importance of different types of distractions in causing crashes. The project involves a number of distinct yet interrelated tasks, including: analysis of crash data from the NASS Crashworthiness Data System (CDS) data file; analysis of narrative data from CDS and North Carolina crash reports; and collection and analysis of field data to determine the prevalence and implications of selected driving distractions in real-world driving.
This report documents the work carried out to date on the project, focusing on the CDS and North Carolina data analyses.
AAAFTS has chosen to focus its efforts specifically on driver distraction, rather than the broader category of driver inattention. It defines distraction as "when a driver is delayed in the recognition of information needed to safely accomplish the driving task because some event, activity, object, or person within or outside the vehicle compelled or tended to induce the driver's shifting attention away from the driving task." The presence of a triggering event distinguishes a distracted driver from one who is simply inattentive or "lost in thought."
Safety problems related to driver inattention and distraction are expected to escalate in the future as more technologies become available for use in personal vehicles. During the summer of 2000, NHTSAhosted an Internet Forum on the safety implications of driver distraction when using in-vehicle technologies including cell phones, in-vehicle navigation systems, night vision systems, and wireless Internet (Llaneras, 2000). The Forum attracted broad international participation from both the public and private sectors.
While cellular telephones and other in-vehicle technologies have been the focus of considerable research within the highway safety community, much less attention has been given to identifying other, non-technological, distractions within the vehicle and their potential role in causing crashes.
The last in-depth crash causation research was sponsored by NHTSA and conducted at Indiana University during the mid-1970s (Treat, Tumbas, McDonald et al., 1979). This study, frequently referred to as the Indiana Tri-Level Study because of the three levels of crash investigation employed, examined the human, environmental, and vehicular factors in traffic crashes.
Study results identified human factors as probable causes in 93% of the investigated crashes, environmental factors as probable causes in 34%, and vehicular factors as probable causes in 13%. Internal distraction was cited as a causal factor in 9% of the crashes and driver inattention in an additional 15%. No information was reported on the frequency of external distractions.
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