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Small children cannot use adult restraint systems in passenger cars. Their size, anatomy, tolerance to trauma and their social behaviour are factors that must be considered when designing child restraint systems (CRS). Surprisingly, and differently from adult restraint systems, CRS are not designed in the same way indicating that in different parts of the world, the analysis of the best protective systems is not the same. In the Nordic countries the tradition has been long in protecting children up to the age of 3 years by rearward facing systems. As they have proven to be very effective, it is important to share the experience with countries where less effective restraint systems for small children are used. In this paper, several aspects of rearward facing systems are presented.

This paper defines a “human requirements envelope” for the thermal environment in vehicles, based on a method of assessment that has evolved during 5 years of vehicle R&D with a thermal manikin. VOLTMAN is a clothed, full-size, articulated model of a seated adult male. The entire skin surface is divided into 19 sections, each section heated subcutaneously under multi-channel process-computer control to maintain a skin temperature distribution typical for sedentary comfort (Mean value 32.8°C). Total heat loss and the distribution of heat flow over the body surface can be accurately measured on-line. Total heat loss affects driver performance, and therefore safety, while sectional heat loss determines comfort, draught sensation, and the risk of cold-related muscular injury.