UMTRI Project

Wheelchair/Wheelchair Tiedown and Occupant Restraint Testing

Sponsor: Various
Investigator: Lawrence Schneider
01/01/1985 - 01/01/2010

The Biosciences Division of UMTRI conducts sled impact tests of wheelchairs and wheelchair tiedowns and occupant restraint systems (WTORS) to determine their impact response characteristics and to evaluate products with respect to voluntary national and international standards and recommended practices. The wheelchair or WTORS to be tested is installed on the sled platform using appropriate test fixtures and methods specified in the different ISO, ANSI/RESNA, and SAE standards and subjected to the 48 kph/40 g deceleration pulse specified in each standard. Wheelchairs are secured using UMTRI’s surrogate four-point strap-type tiedown system. WTORS are tested using the ISO/SAE 187 lb structurally rigid surrogate wheelchair. Several different sizes of anthropomorphic test devices (ATDs), or crash test dummies, are available at UMTRI for use in wheelchair and WTORS testing. The ATD selected is based on the weight range of user sizes for which the wheelchair has been designed. ATDs, tiedown straps, and belt restraints are instrumented to assess the loading to the wheelchair occupant. High speed digital video cameras are used to record the kinematics of the ATD and test components.