Authors: Rosalie Connell, Gretchen Baker, Julie Mansfield, Injury Biomechanics Research Center, The Ohio State University
Abstract
Deviation from ideal postures within belt-positioning booster seats (BPB) can lead to increased risks of injury during motor vehicle collisions. Although previous work has observed and measured out-of-position postures, there is a limited understanding of the influence of occupants’ age and anthropometry on such changes in posture. A laboratory study was conducted to observe naturalistic postures of BPB occupants over 30-minute time periods. Changes from ideal postures were collected and analyzed with respect to time, seating condition, and occupant characteristics to assess influences of anthropometry on changes in posture. These preliminary investigations suggest that occupant size influences changes in pelvis orientation, hip flexion, and knee flexion. Age, seated height, and buttock-popliteal length were most significant in relation to changes in lower extremity posture. All anthropometric variables assessed significantly contributed to changes in posture when accounting for time. However, this conclusion was highly variable when evaluating summary metrics of average, maximum, or cumulative posture changes. Future work should continue to explore how occupant characteristics contribute to their seated posture, especially when conducting time-dependent posture measurements. Developing finite element head models using advanced blocking techniques: density-changeable high-quality all-hexahedral meshes and fit for individual brain component morphing.
Type: Short Communication