Investigation of THOR-AV 5F Biofidelity in Sled Test Conditions with a Semi-Rigid Seat 2023-22-0004

THOR-AV 5F, a modified THOR-5F dummy, was designed to represent both upright and reclined occupants in vehicle crashworthiness studies. The dummy was evaluated in four test conditions: a) 25° seatback, 15 km/h, b) 25° seatback, 32 km/h, c) 45° seatback, 15 km/h, d) 45° seatback, 32 km/h. The dummy’s biomechanical responses were compared against those of postmortem human subjects (PMHS) tested in the same test conditions. The latest National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) BioRank method was used to provide a biofidelity ranking score (BRS) for each data channel in the tests to assess the dummy’s biofidelity objectively. The evaluation was categorized into two groups: restraint system and dummy. In the four test conditions, the restraint system showed good biofidelity with BRS scores of 1.49, 1.47, 1.15, and 1.79, respectively. The THOR-AV 5F demonstrated excellent biofidelity in three test conditions: 25° seatback, 15 km/h (BRS = 0.76); 25° seatback, 32 km/h (BRS = 0.89); and 45° seatback, 32 km/h (BRS = 0.93). In the fourth test condition, 45° seatback, 15 km/h, the dummy demonstrated good biofidelity with a BRS score of 1.06. The dummy demonstrated good durability. No damage was identified with a full inspection conducted after the tests.