An Advanced, Monolithic Accelerometer for Safety Testing

A new piezoresistive accelerometer has been developed for use in anthropomorphic test dummies and on vehicle for crash and sled safety tests. The accelerometer utilizes a monolithic silicon sensor that offers a wide frequency response, 2000 g full scale range, and a wide temperature range from -54 to +121°C. Test results demonstrate improvements over existing accelerometer designs with excellent stability after numerous shocks, high overrange capability and minimal thermal zero shifts.