Dummy Head Kinematics in Tripped Rollover Tests and a Test Method to Evaluate the Effect of Curtain Airbag Deployment

A tripped rollover is one of several types of rollover initiations. Developing a curtain airbag system for occupant protection in tripped rollovers requires the knowledge of the occupant kinematics prior to tripping. As a vehicle experiences lateral deceleration prior to the trip initiation, the unrestrained dummy head is already in motion and may be close to the vehicle interior or at the side glass plane. If the vehicle is equipped with a curtain airbag system, it may be difficult to trigger the curtain deployment prior to the dummy interacting with the vehicle side structure due to the degree of difficulty in discriminating between a roll and no roll situation early enough in the event. For such conditions, a curtain airbag restraint system should be designed so that it deploys and positions itself properly as the dummy head is approaching the side glass plane or in the deployment zone. In this study, a dynamic rollover test is used to investigate the dummy head kinematics prior to a vehicle roll. The deployment of a curtain airbag restraint system that will deploy properly in the given conditions is discussed. Also, an out-of-position static test that simulates the dummy head kinematics observed in the low “g” (<1.5 g) dynamic test is presented.