UMTRI Project

Development of the MAMA-2B Pregnant Crash Test Dummy

Sponsor: General Motors
Investigator: Jonathan Rupp
11/01/1996 - 03/31/2000

A prototype pregnant crash test dummy, the Maternal Anthropomorphic Measurement Apparatus version 2B (MAMA-2B), was developed at UMTRI. The prototype was developed with three primary objectives: 1) realistic anthropometry to improve interaction with belts and other interior components, 2) biofidelic abdomen force-deflection response, and 3) injury criterion and instrumentation to assess risk of adverse fetal outcome in a motor-vehicle crash. The MAMA-2B anthropometry was developed from an associated study that collected data on pregnant women in the seated automotive posture. The force-deflection response of the abdomen lies within several dynamic abdominal impact corridors. Injury criteria were developed by performing sled tests with the MAMA-2B using different impact severities and restraint systems. The risk of adverse fetal outcome for each test was assigned according to the risk of adverse fetal outcome estimated for each condition developed from the pregnancy crash database. An association between peak anterior pressure in the MAMA-2B abdomen and the risk of adverse fetal outcome was developed as a preliminary injury criterion. Additional work to upgrade the MAMA-2B focused on improving the functionality of dummy components, developing additional instrumentation to measure the displacement or contour of the abdomen components, and developing additional injury criterion for use with the new instrumentation.