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Crash testing injury calculations have historically been based on measurements of forces and accelerations on cadavers subjected to crashes. For example, the Head Injury Criteria (HIC) was developed by bolting accelerometers to the skulls of cadavers and comparing the actual damage to the head and brain to the measured acceleration. These calculations are currently being improved by evaluating the injuries sustained by race car drivers involved in crashes during races. Biomechanics researchers have installed accelerometers to measure the race car accelerations during a crash. To further improve the injury assessment capabilities, the researchers would like to measure the actual acceleration of the driver’s head. Unfortunately race drivers, unlike cadavers, object to having accelerometers bolted to their skulls. Mounting accelerometers on the racing helmets gives some data, but the drivers head can move within the helmet during a crash.

Measurements of deploying pressure distribution on the inner surface of a passenger-side air-bag door is important for design and development of inflatable restraint systems. The door is designed to open along its tear seam under the internal bag pressurization. The magnitude of the pressure is a function of inflator output, volume of a reaction can, bag folding patterns, door structures, and environmental conditions (such as temperatures). Current studies utilize modified miniature load cells to quantify the contact pressure between the air bag fabric and inner surface of the module door. These loads were measured during deployments of passenger-side air-bag modules. The results have demonstrated that the modified load cell can be used to measure the deploying pressure on a passenger-side air-bag door. The peak pressure measured prior to the initial tear-seam opening could be as high as 2MPa for a specific door design.