UMTRI Project

Airbag Skin Abrasions

Sponsor:
Investigator: Matthew Reed
00/00/0000 - 00/00/0000

The rapid deployment of airbags creates the potential for abrasions caused by the airbag fabric interacting with the skin. In a series of studies, the mechanisms by which airbag fabric causes skin abrasions were quantified. The fold pattern and inflator characteristics were found to affect the likelihood of abrasion. A laboratory test procedure was developed that uses pressure-sensitive film to quantify the abrasion potential of an airbag system. The laboratory procedure has been applied to both driver and passenger frontal airbags.