Biomechanics of Older Drivers to Mitigate Injury in Automobile Accidents

The aging population is expected to increase substantially in the near future. The fatal crash rates (per mile traveled) involving older drivers (65+) are considerably higher than those of younger drivers. Most studies conducted to reduce the crash rate and fatalities of older drivers are non-engineering based approaches. Therefore, these studies could not lead to engineering solutions, such as vehicle design modifications to mitigate injury of older drivers. This study evaluated the mechanics of the aging occupant during an automobile accident. Three different approaches were employed in the study: 1) construction of a simplified dummy and experimental testing, 2) finite element (FE) analysis of vehicle crashes using an FE dummy model, and 3) FE analysis of vehicle crashes using the Total Human Model for Safety (THUMS), which is an advanced FE model of actual humans in detail including the outer shape, bones, muscles, internal organs, etc. Using the first and the second approaches, the effect of driving postures commonly found in older drivers was investigated. Using the third approach, how an accident affects older drivers was investigated. The findings from this study will lead to engineering based solutions to mitigate injury in aging population, which is recommended as future study.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $225000
• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Managing Organizations:

  Department of Transportation

  Office of the Secretary
  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Project Managers:

  Tucker-Thomas, Dawn

• Performing Organizations:

  Florida State University, Tallahassee

  217 Westcott Building
  Tallahassee, FL  United States  32306-
• Principal Investigators:

  Sobanjo, John

• Start Date: 20150105
• Expected Completion Date: 20160805
• Actual Completion Date: 20161215
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program
• Subprogram: Research

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Aged drivers; Biophysics; Crashworthiness; Dummies; Finite element method; Geometric design; Highway safety; Injury severity; Multiple vehicle crashes; Ran off road crashes; Vehicle occupants; Vehicle safety
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Passenger Transportation; Safety and Human Factors; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01604536
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Center for Accessibility and Safety for an Aging Population
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Jul 1 2016 12:36PM