Evaluation of Frontal Impact Restraint System in Integrated Safety Scenario Using Human Body Model with PID Controlled Active Muscles

Automated Emergency Braking (AEB) systems have been on the market for the past decade, and are growing rapidly in use. Real‐world accident analyses indicate the value of studying countermeasures in pre‐impact braking phases. An AEB system can modify occupant pre‐crash positioning, which has not yet been evaluated in rating and legal tests. The objective of this study was to evaluate frontal restraint systems in integrated safety scenarios: activation of diverse pre‐impact AEB systems, followed by a frontal impact. A validated Active Human Body Model (AHBM), capable of mimicking human posture maintenance and reflexive responses under pre‐impact braking, was used. The human body model includes active muscles controlled by a proportional integral derivative (PID) control system. Using the validated AHBM, frontal restraint system performances in combined pre‐crash braking, and crash scenarios, were evaluated, including comparisons with conventional methods, i.e. the HBM without active muscles, and the THOR dummy. Effects of varying pre‐pretensioner (PPT) forces were also evaluated. It was found that different braking durations and levels led to corresponding occupant positions. The PPT applied pre‐crash maintained the occupant’s initial position to some extent, resulting in a decrease in thoracic injuries. Using an AHBM appears to be a rational approach for the evaluation of integrated safety performance.