Average-sized male and female rear-impact dummy models in simulations of real world cases addressing sensitivity in Whiplash associated disorder assessment

Paper in proceedings, 2017

The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in motion and load responses between the EvaRID and BioRID finite element models by reconstructing real world accidents in order to assess ATD-specific injury assessment reference values for female and male occupants. Four rear-impact crash cases in cars equipped with the same type of front seats were selected from the Folksam accident database. The cars were fitted with crash recorders and the crash pulses were accessed together with occupant data, including neck injury severity. The Whiplash Associated Disorder injury outcomes reported in the crash data were more severe for female occupants than male occupants. The accident reconstruction simulations were conducted by applying the crash pulse to a finite element model of the seat. The analysis showed that neck injury criteria values were lower for the EvaRID than the BioRID. During an impact, kinematic response differences due to differences in body size, geometry, weight distribution, joint stiffness and mass were observed between the EvaRID and BioRID, which may all contribute to the lower neck injury criteria values for the EvaRID. The accident reconstruction analyses indicated a need of separate injury criteria thresholds for each gender to assess the risk of sustaining Whiplash Associated Disorders for both male and female occupants. The method used in this study could be used on a larger amount of cases in order to establish the threshold values for females as has been established for males.