The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a set of occupant restraint systems, including different types of seatbelts and airbags, in a light tactical vehicle under frontal crash conditions through sled testing. Twelve sled tests were conducted using a sled buck representing the commander compartment of a light tactical vehicle under a crash pulse within the FMVSS No. 213 testing corridor. A HIII 95th percentile male anthropometric test device wearing an advanced combat helmet, improved outer tactical vest and a SAW Gunner tactical assault panel was used for all sled tests. A set of restraint systems were tested, including 3-point, 4-point, and 5-point seatbelts with and without pre-tensioner and load limiter, different passenger airbags, and a variety of seatbelt-mounted airbags. Generally speaking, ATD kinematics were better with an airbag than without an airbag. With seatbelt only, the ATD’s head tends to contact the instrument panel, while a properly designed passenger airbag can prevent a hard head contact. A properly designed seatbelt-mounted airbag can also effectively reduce the head and neck injury measures, although the improvement is not as much as those provided by a passenger airbag. The ATD chest injury risk was generally high with baseline seatbelt due to the lack of load limit and added mass from military gear. However, it can be reduced by using seatbelt pre-tensioner and load limiter. The presence of an airbag can enable a lower load limit to be used, which reduced the chest deflection indirectly. This study demonstrated the benefit of adding properly designed restraint systems, including innovative seatbelt-mounted airbag designs, to improve the occupant protection for a light tactical vehicle.
Keywords:
Airbag; Seatbelt; Seatbelt-mounted Airbag; Sled Test; Tactical Vehicle