Human body models

Book chapter, 2016

Experimental studies with human subjects, volunteers or post mortem human subjects (PMHS) help us understand the biomechanics of the impact during a traffic crash. Anthropometric crash test dummies (ATDs) were developed to provide tools for the development and assessment of safety systems to address the variation in human anthropometry. ATDs are available with varying specifications of gender, age, and body sizes. Still, due to persistant limitations associated with ATDs and the advancement in computer based simulation capabilities, the human body computer models have become more popular in recent times. Their ability to simulate both pre-crash and post-crash scenarios, including active muscle response, has made them invaluable to crash analysis. This chapter discusses basic methodological considerations regarding human body models, includes a limited review of recently published whole body models, and briefly presents the biomechanical properties of human tissue. The chapter concludes with a discussion on future outlook and recommendations for targeted research on the aspect of injury predictability and making human body models more numerically robust.