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Child dummies used in certification dynamic tests have not been improved since their marketing and their approval as European regulation dummies. Their main shortcoming lies in a too high and therefore unrealistic stiffness of the torso front part. The paper addresses a study carried out in the aim of solving this problem. It includes two parts: in a first section, the changes brought to the dummy torso and intended to improve its biofidelity and to reduce stiffness drastically are described. In order to reach such an objective, the lower part of the upper torso was remodelled; the pelvis profile was redefined and the geometrical and mechanical characteristics of the foam used for the abdominal insert were changed. The results obtained using two transducers installed in the abdominal section are then presented. The measurement principle of the first transducer consists in a pressure measurement, and the principle of the second one in a load measurement.

For many years, heavy trucks have accounted for a large part of the damaging road traffic in France. To determine ways of improving heavy vehicles so as to diminish the severe score of accidents, the national statistic file of injurious accidents in 1982 and the ONSER bidisciplinary investigation file have been analyzed. The most important risks affect pedestrians, two-wheelers, and car passengers. It appears research on heavy vehicles should be undertaken at first for- Improving lateral vision Fitting up of heavy vehicle flanks to avoid falls under rear wheels and to limit underrun Fitting up of heavy vehicle front structure to reduce its aggressivity against passenger cars The purpose of safety measures complementary with energy savings necessity should bring about realizable solutions.

Though the three points belt has saved many lives among car occupants, the improvements provided to its design should not be stopped. Points of concern still are effectiveness, and comfort and convenience. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness improvements such as integration of anchorage points to the seat, retractors with a webbing clamp or with a preloader on inflatable belts. Then the possible improvements of comfort and convenience will be reviewed.

Children are often involved in automotive accidents especially as car occupants. Their protection presents particular problems in the first years of life, due to large changes in their morphology and behaviour. The aim of this paper is to contribute towards the development of a better evaluation of the child's tolerance to impact. Car accident investigations are analysed to bring information on injury mechanisms and severities. Free fall accidents are other sources of data used to correlate injuries with impact conditions. Theoretical analysis is considered for extrapolation of experimental data obtained from adult humans and animal surrogates. Then crash simulations with child cadavers and primates restrained in child seats are analysed and the estimation of tolerance levels for children is discussed.

In France, among the 12200 road users who died in 1979, 900 were children under 15 years. General statistics indicate that road accident fatalities are quite comparable for children between the three users'categories - pedestrians, cyclists and automobile occupants. In order to propose some technical improvements for primary as well as secondary safety, it is important to better specify the real distribution of risks, the circumstances and injury consequences of accidents. An epidemiological investigation has been set up with its sources at the hospital emergency services specialised for children. The first results obtained at the hospital Marseille Nord are discussed and let emphasize on the higher severity of head injuries, particularly with unconsciousness for the pedestrian. Lower limbs lesions were mainly fractures for the pedestrian while the 2 wheeler suffered fractures to both upper and lower limbs.

In France, the improvement of the child protection in cars has been one main concern since 1975. It sets a quite specific problem dealling with physical and psychological factors. This paper will give an overview of the actual situation. The accident statistics and investigations recall the benefits of the back seat travel for the children under ten years old. Moreover two surveys aiming at describing the real conditions in which the child is travelling in the car and the restraint system is used, are analysed. They indicate the very low use rate of child restraints especially for eldest as well as the parents appreciations on these child restraints. These elements are discussed in order to propose future efforts which contribute to the improvement of the child occupant’s safety.