Review: Biomechanics of Child Occupant Protection

This paper provides a review on the following issues: the differences in injury patterns between adults and children under similar loading conditions during an automotive crash event. Because of the recent awareness and the ensuing necessity, as an example, injuries including fatalities due to airbag deployment are discussed. Biomechanical differences explain the varying injury patterns and mechanisms of injury. The commonly adopted scaling techniques for predicting pediatric tolerances are described. A comparison of the biomechanical properties of the pediatric and adult structures is given. Some insight is provided with regard to the use of these data to develop validated mathematical models of pediatric structures. The paper concludes with recommendations for further research.