Data from frontal crash tests involving a Ford Taurus in various configurations were examined to characterize the dynamic response of the floor pan and the brake pedal during impact and associate their behavior with the axial loads transmitted through the dummy feet.

Analysis of the data from these crash tests suggests that there are floor pan acceleration pulses of high amplitude and short duration which are associated with small floor pan intrusion and high distal tibia axial loads. Conversely, there are floor pan acceleration pulses of low amplitude and long duration which are associated with large floor pan intrusion and low distal tibia axial loads.

The axial loads measured by the load cells just above the ankles in the dummies were highly correlated with the peak acceleration of the floor pan or brake pedal. However, these axial loads did not correlate well with the amount of floor pan/brake pedal intrusion.

Occupant simulations using crash pulses identified in the actual crashes suggested that compressive axial loading through the ankle can be reduced by including several centimeters of suitable energy absorbing padding on the floor pan.