Design and performance of the THOR advanced frontal crash test dummy thorax and abdomen assemblies

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Rangarajan, N.¹; White, Jr, R.¹; Shams, T.¹; Beach, D.¹; Fullerton, J.¹; Haffner, M. P.²; Eppinger, R. E.²; Pritz, H.²; Rhule, D.³; Dalmotas, D.⁴; Fournier, E.⁵

Design and performance of the THOR advanced frontal crash test dummy thorax and abdomen assemblies

Proceedings of the 16th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV)

Affiliations

¹GESAC, Incorporated

²National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

³Transportation Research Center, Incorporated

⁴Transport Canada

⁵Biokinetics and Associates, Incorporated
Abstract

In May 1994, GESAC was awarded a contract to design an advanced frontal crash test dummy which has been named THOR. This paper describes the results of an intensive two-year effort to develop the design criteria, design, and test the thorax and abdomen of THOR and its associated instrumentation.

The paper will describe refinement of thoracic anthropometry, design of a realistic belt to shoulder interface, refinements in rib bonding procedures leading to greatly improved durability, design of a posture adjustment system, development of a new 3-D chest deflection measurement system capable of tracking chest compressive velocities up to 10 m/s, new upper and lower abdomen designs which permit continuous measurement of abdominal penetration by restraint and vehicle components, and other design features which have resulted in a more modular, serviceable design.

The paper will also present and summarize the extensive component and sled tests conducted both in the United States and in Canada, for the purpose of evaluating and documenting THOR thorax and abdomen performance against program goals.
Links

URL: http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/esv/esv16/98s9o12.pdf

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2015	Mertz HJ, Irwin AL. Anthropomorphic test devices and injury risk assessments. In: Yoganandan N, Nahum AM, Melvin JW, eds. Accidental Injury: Biomechanics and Prevention. 3rd ed. New York: Springer; 2015:83-112.
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2012	Yoganandan N, Pintar FA, Moore J, Rinaldi J, Schlick M, Maiman DJ. Upper and lower neck loads in belted human surrogates in frontal impacts. In: 56th Annual Proceedings, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM). October 14-17, 2012; Seattle, WA.125-136.
2001	Longhitano DC, Turley JE. Lower extremity response of the Thor-Lx compared to the Hybrid-III lower leg in frontal barrier crash tests. In: Proceedings of the 17th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 4-7, 2001; Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
2001	Akiyama A, Okamoto M, Rangarajan N. Development and application of the new pedestrian dummy. In: Proceedings of the 17th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 4-7, 2001; Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
2003	Bhalla K, Bose D, Madeley NJ, Kerrigan J, Crandall J, Longhitano D, Takahashi Y. Evaluation of the response of mechanical pedestrian knee joint impactors in bending and shear loading. In: Proceedings of the 18th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). May 19-22, 2003; Nagoya, Japan.
2003	Bostrom O, Haland Y. Benefits of a 3+2 point belt system and an inboard torso side support in frontal, far-side and rollover crashes. In: Proceedings of the 18th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). May 19-22, 2003; Nagoya, Japan.
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2007	Martin PG, Shook L. NHTSA’s THOR-NT database. In: Proceedings of the 20th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 18-21, 2007; Lyon, France.
2009	Yaguchi M, Ono K, Masuda M, Watamori T, Seshita T, Hibino T. Comparison of dynamic responses of the THOR-NT and Hybrid III in offset frontal crash test. In: Proceedings of the 21st International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV). June 15-18, 2009; Stuttgart, Germany.
2007	Shams T, Rangarajan N, Rowe J, Conner H. Development of abdomen compression measurement sensors. In: Proceedings of the 35th International Workshop on Human Subjects for Biomechanical Research. 2007.179-194.
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1999	Huang TJ, McDonald J, Artis M, Rangarajan N, Shams T, White RP Jr, Beach D, Campbell R Jr, Akiyama A, Yoshida S, Ishikawa H, Konosu A. Development of a biofidelic dummy for car-pedestrian accident studies. In: Proceedings of the 1999 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 23-24, 1999; Sitges, Spain.315-327.
2000	Shaw G, Crandall J, Butcher J. Biofidelity evaluation of the THOR advanced frontal crash test dummy. In: Proceedings of the 2000 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impact. September 20-22, 2000; Montpellier, France.11-29.
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2022	Brumbelow ML, Jermakian JS, Arbelaez RA. Predicting real-world thoracic injury using THOR and Hybrid III crash tests. In: Proceedings of the 2022 International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Injury. September 14-16, 2022; Porto, Portugal.264-287.
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2003	McDonald JP, Shams T, Rangarajan N, Beach D, Huang T-J, Freemire J, Artis M, Wang Y, Haffner M. Design and development of a THOR-based small female crash test dummy. Stapp Car Crash J. 2003;47:551-570. SAE 2003-22-0024.
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