Abstract

The Biofidel-Dummy offers the advantage that all accident situations, including accidents with cyclists or pedestrians, can be realistically simulated. There are hardly any limitations to the possible uses of the dummy (applications and speed ranges). A major disadvantage of the dummy is that, despite being a very refined replica of the human body, it still does not mimic the agility of a living body. During a crash with a person, however, muscle activity is crucial for the collision course and the resulting injury pattern. This is particularly true for small speed changes, such as those that occur in accidents within towns. The aim of this development is to equip the so far muscle-less Biofidel-Dummy with artificial muscles to imitate natural body tension. The central criterion for success is to increase the biofidelity of the dummy. With the support of the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster (WWU) and Crastest-Service (CTS), a pneumatic muscle equivalent was developed and manufactured, which is already being used successfully in the dummy's neck area. It is now possible to generate, adjust and control body tension in the dummy in a targeted manner and to simulate a very real movement behavior of the dummy and a realistic injury pattern in any crash test constellation.