Development of the cervical omni-directional bending response apparatus (cobra)

The Cervical Omni-directional Bending Response Apparatus (COBRA) is a twelve channel strain-based transducer which measures curvature in two perpendicular directions. In this poster presentation, it is pointed out that the COBRA was developed in response to the need for more comprehensive data on the shape of the Anthropomorphic Test Dummy neck during impact in automotive crash testing. An initial COBRA prototype was fabricated and tested. Results from those tests prompted a refinement in the design to a second prototype (COBRA II). The COBRA II consists of twelve flexible steel bands oriented at right angles to each other and connected by aluminum disks. A data acquisition and shape synthesis software program is briefly described. Both static and dynamic tests were performed using the COBRA II device. These tests are described in more detail. It is concluded that the COBRA II represents a usable prototype to assess the curvature of the cervical spine during an impact event. In addition, the COBRA II was shown to be a durable instrument, giving repeatable results under rigorous dynamic testing conditions. For the covering abstract of the conference see ITRD E203597.