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Active human body models for virtual occupant response has entered its fifth stage

Jun, 09 2021

The SAFER A-HBM5 project follows on from four previous projects; A-HBM steps I-IV, from 2008 to today. This is state-of-the-art research on car occupant muscle responses and development of active human body models (HBM) and is part of a continuous line of research projects working in sequence towards the evolution of an even more advanced SAFER Human Body Model. 

Within human body modelling, SAFER provides a competence platform for SAFER partners as well as a natural contact point for external cooperation. The growing activity in human body modelling has already placed SAFER amongst other well-known organisations, and the interest shown by other universities proves its high academic relevance globally. SAFER’s HBM vision encompasses a scaleable, tuneable, human body model with omni-directional injury prediction capabilities, including high-g and low-g events. This means a virtual human substitute that can be used for predicting injury outcome in any impact situation/ direction, able to replicate a large population of people, standing as well as sitting, with humanlike kinematics in impacts as well as vehicle-manoeuvre events. The human body models, including the knowledge obtained in the pre-competitive joint research, are used by the industry in safety developments.

The development of SAFER’s human body model and knowledge building in the field of biomechanics and human body protection continues through the start-up of the latest project Active human body models for virtual occupant response, step 5. The project aims to introduce a more advanced head controller, and to further refine the upper body control for prediction of humanlike response when transferring between upright, forward leaning and reclined postures. In addition, the first step in addressing population variability is taken, by modelling the average female in addition to average male model. 

The project will be placed in SAFER’s project portfolio for Human body protection. The project started in April and will continue until March 2023. FFI is the financier and project partners are Volvo Cars, Autoliv, Chalmers and DYNAmore. Lotta Jakobsson, Volvo Cars is the project leader and Emma Larsson, Chalmers University of Technology, is the PhD student in the project.