SLIDE 1

Side Impact Inflatable Restraint Systems 


October 25, 2001
Real World Experience of Side Impact Air Bags in the Special Crash Investigations 

Augustus Chip Chidester
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration


SLIDE 2:
Case Selection Criteria

* high injury outcome with deployment of a side air bag

* allegations of a fatal or seriously injured occupant attributed to the deployment of a side air bag

* deployment of a side air bag into a position occupied by a child

* deployment of a head occupant protection system into an occupied position



SLIDE 3:
VARIOUS TYPES OF SIDE AIR BAGS
[exemplar photos]
 - IC
 - Door/ITS
 - Seat
 - Seat H/T
 - door


SLIDE 4:
55 SIDE AIR BAG CASES (10/01/01)
type of side air bag / plane of impact

SEAT
 - left		14
 - front	3
 - right	7
 - rollover	- 
 - no impact	2
 - totals	26

SEAT/IC
 - left		-
 - front	1
 - right	-
 - rollover	-
 - no impact	-
 - totals	1

SEAT H/T
 - left		3
 - front	-
 - right	-
 - rollover	-
 - no impact	-
 - totals	3

DOOR
 - left		9
 - front	-
 - right	5
 - rollover	4
 - no impact	-
 - totals	18

DOOR/ITS
 - left		4
 - front	1
 - right	-
 - rollover	1
 - no impact	-
 - totals	6

DOOR/IC
 - left		1
 - front	-
 - right	-
 - rollover	-
 - no impact	-
 - totals	1

TOTALS
 - left		31
 - front	5
 - right	12
 - rollover	5
 - no impact	2
 - totals	55

SLIDE 5:
55 SIDE AIR BAG CASES (10/01/01)
11 - BMW
9 - Volvo
9 - Mercedes Benz
7 - General Motors
6 - Volkswagen
6 - Toyota/Lexus
2 - Nissan/Infinity
1 - Porsche
1 - Mazda
1 - Jaguar
1 - Lincoln
1 - Honda

SLIDE 6:
31 LEFT SIDE IMPACTS
8 -Head and thorax side air bag deployments
 - 1-Fatal (severe intrusion) struck in drivers door by school bus
	Lacerated Aorta and No Head Injury
 - 1-Serious Injury (severe intrusion) struck in drivers door by a pick up truck
	Fractured Ribs, Collapsed Lung, Lacerated Spleen, Torn Diaphragm, Torn Bladder and No Head Injury
 - 3-Minor 
 - 3-To be determined (new cases)?



SLIDE 7:
31 Left Side Impacts

23 -Thorax only side air bag deployments
 - 5 -Fatal (severe intrusion)
 - 1 -AIS 3 (To be discussed later)
	3 fractured ribs with pnuemothorax related to the side air bag deployment
 - 1 -AIS -2 (Struck by P/U, crushing Injury)
	Concussion; Fractured left clavicle; Contusions to left side of body, related to left side door panel.
 - 12 -AIS -1
 - 4 No injury, a complaint of pain or unknown if injured


SLIDE 8:
12 Right Side Impacts

12 - Thorax only side air bag deployments
 - 3 -Fatal (severe intrusion)
 - 3 -AIS -2 (not side air bag related)
	Fractured R Wrist, Rib R Contusion, Elbow R Dislocation
	Fractured Clavicle
	Fractured Lumbar Vertebrae?
 - 2 -AIS -1
 - 1 No injury, a complaint of pain or unknown if injured 
 = 3 -Not Occupied


SLIDE 9:
NO-SIDE-AIR-BAG-DEPLOYMENT-RELATED-FATALITIES
8 -Driver Fatalities
 - 5 Left side impacts witha thorax deployment 
	 - severe intrusion
 - 1 Left side impacts with a Head and Thorax deployment
	- severe intrusion
 - 2 Rollover (driver ejection)with a deployment

5 -Passenger Fatalities
 - 3 Right side impacts with a deployment
	- severe intrusion
 - 1 Rollover
 - 1 Frontal


SLIDE 10:
2 CHILDREN IN SIDE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENTS
[post-crash interior/exterior photos]

* Right front side air bag deployment, 3 year old male, unbelted, minor injury (AIS-1), injury source was the side airbag cover flap

*Left side, back seat deployment, 13 year old male, unbelted minor injury (AIS-1), injury source side airbag cover flap.


SLIDE 11:
1-SERIOUS INJURY RELATED TO A SIDE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT
Vehicle Damage
 - 09LPEW3
 - 11.4" (29cm) of maximum crush
 - 9 mph (14.5kmph) barrier equivalent delta V

Driver Demographics
 - 76 y.o male
 - 6'2" 180 lbs
 - 3 point manual restraint in use



SLIDE 12:
1-SERIOUS INJURY RELATED TO A SIDE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT
Driver Injuries
 - closed fracture 6,7,8th left lateral ribs (3) with left anterior pheumothorax
 - abrasion left lateral chest
[photo & corresponding skeletal diagram, indicating location of closed fracture, exemplar vehicle & occupant]

SLIDE 13:
1-SERIOUS INJURY RELATED TO A SIDE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT
Side Air Bag as the Driver Injury Source

?Closed fracture 6, 7 & 8th left lateral ribs (3) with left anterior pnuemothorax
	?Resulted from a narrow focused impact
	?Located proximal to the side air bag

?Abrasion left lateral chest
	?Crushing injuries related to intrusion are typically contusions
	?Swiping injuries are abrasions



SLIDE 14:
SIDE AIR BAG ISSUES _ 26 CASES
The fore and aft seat location is not affected.
?Inadvertent deployments.?Objects against the seat mounted firing trigger.\
	?The air bag has produced minor (AIS-1) injuries
?The occupant may miss the air bag in crashes with a PDOF of one oclock.
?No head protection


SLIDE 15:
SIDE AIR BAG ISSUES - 18 CASES	

?The fore and aft seat location is affected.
?Inadvertent deployments.
	?GM Recall on Cadillac
?The cover flap has produced with serious (AIS-3) injuries
	?Vehicle no longer in production with this air bag configuration
?The occupant may miss the air bag in crashes with a PDOF of one oclock.
?No head protection



SLIDE 16:
HEAD PROTECTION SIDE AIR BAG ISSUES - 11 CASES

* The fore and aft seat location is not affected.

*in the cases with head protection, including at least one fatality due to a thorax injury, the occupant received no life threatening head injuries

*The head protection side air bag has not been attributed to any injuries 



SLIDE 17:
CONCLUSIONS
?No fatalities have been attributed to the deployment of a side air bag
?One seriously injured occupant (AIS-3) has been attributed to the deployment of a door mounted side air bag
?In the 2 cases involving children, the side air bags afforded occupant protection.
?The head protection side air bag has been successful in reducing head injury.
?Passenger compartment intrusion is the primary contributor to the fatal injury mechanism.



SLIDE 18:
PUBLIC ACCESS TO DATA
[screen shot of NCSA/SCI web page]
www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/ncsa/sci.html