Effects of high levels of obesity on driver seat belt fit : final report.

Details

• Creators:
  Jones, Monica L. H. ; Ebert, Sheila M. ; Reed, Matthew P.
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Michigan. Transportation Research Institute
• Corporate Contributors:
  Center for Advancing Transportation Leadership and Safety (ATLAS Center) ; United States. Dept. of Transportation. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology ; University Transportation Centers Program (U.S.)
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Crash victim simulation
  • Gender
  • Human body mass
  • Obesity
  • Seat belts
  • Vehicle occupants
• Publication/ Report Number:
  ATLAS-2016-15
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States
• Edition:
  Final report
• Corporate Publisher:
  Center for Advancing Transportation Leadership and Safety (ATLAS Center)
• Abstract:
  Obesity has been shown to increase the risks to motor vehicle occupants of some types of injury in crashes. The ; effects of obesity on injuries are not well understood and current prevention efforts do not effectively address the ; vulnerability associated with the high body mass index (BMI) cohort. Previous studies demonstrated that obesity ; effectively introduces slack in the seat belt restraint system by routing the belt further away from the underlying ; skeletal structures. These studies, however, have not measured individuals with a BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2. Because ; approximately 5% of US adults have BMI exceeding this threshold, this study extends the previous research on the ; relationships between body habitus and belt fit with data from 52 male and female licensed drivers with BMI from 31 ; to 59 kg/m2 ; (median 38 kg/m2). Consistent with previous research, higher BMI was associated with a lap belt ; position further forward and higher relative to the pelvis. On average, a person with a BMI of 40 places the belt 118 ; mm above and 68 mm forward of the anterior-superior iliac spine landmarks on the pelvis. Previous studies have ; shown mean values of 31 mm and 33 mm, respectively, for individuals with BMI 25. The data suggest a continued ; focus on improving restraint systems for individuals with high BMI is needed.
  More +
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  DTRT13-G-UTC54
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/31431/dot_31431_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 7.13 MB]
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers ; US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:c3e4b5b391591c63a0d93682ba9ea6b1a4507b01e0cbac461cc91631e9e5dd58