Drop Damping Seat to Reduce Whiplash Injury in Rear-end Collision

Neck injuries caused by rear end collisions have become a major problem in traffic safety over the last two decades. This situation calls for more research in the field. One area of interest is a damping seat slide to reduce neck injury. To reduce neck injury (Whiplash), based upon new biomechanical research, the motion between head and torso should be reduced. In case of a rear end impact new seat will slide backwards during the impact which allows the motion to damp. Working Model software was used first to simulate and analyse the behaviour of the new system. Also the sled test rig was developed for experimental purposes. The results show occupant protection increases with the new damping seat by up to 75%.