Good News for Advanced Crash Test Dummies: The U.S. Spring Regulatory Agenda is Released

The United States Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has released the 2022 Spring Regulatory Agenda, which reports on the actions of Federal Agencies and provides important public notices about proposed regulatory and deregulatory activities. Among those notices is vital information within the transportation regulatory sector and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) active and passive safety initiatives.

The 2022 spring notices include new dates for the Federalization and Regulatory inclusion of the THOR-50M, THOR-5F, WorldSID-50M, and Pedestrian Safety. These particular new dates are specific to the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) rulemaking but are precursors to the upcoming US NCAP inclusions of these advanced safety devices.

In the proposed rule stage are the Part 572 THOR-50M Crash Test Dummy (2127-AM20) defining the THOR 50^th percentile male anthropomorphic test device (ATD) and the FMVSS No. 208 THOR-50M Compliance Option (2127-AM21) allowing the THOR-50M to be used in place of the Hybrid III 50M. The Part 572 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) is now projected for September of 2022 and the FMVSS Compliance Option NPRM projected for December 2022.

The Part 572 WorldSlD-50M Crash Test Dummy (2127-AM22) defining the WorldSID-50^th percentile male ATD and the FMVSS No. 214 WorldSlD-50M Compliance Option (2127-AM23) allowing the WorldSID-50M to be used in place of the EuroSID-2re are projected for December 2022 and March 2023 respectively.

The Part 572 THOR 5th Female Crash Test Dummy (2127-AM56) is slated for an NPRM in May 2023, while the Pedestrian Safety Global Technical Regulation has been extended with plans to issue an NPRM in October 2022.

These defined strategies will comply with mandates in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) but more importantly they signal NHTSA’s commitment to update crash safety testing standards to utilize the newest technology and state-of-the-art dummies to further vehicle occupant protection. These changes will not only update the federal minimum regulatory standards but will also pave the way to modernizing the U.S. NCAP protocols with these same technologies. Updated announcements on the U.S. NCAP are expected soon.

Currently, the THOR-50M ATD is employed in Euro NCAP and ANCAP rules, but it deviates in lower leg assessments with the incorporation of Hybrid III components. The U.S. specified THOR ATD’s include the advanced legs that detect ankle, leg and knee impacts – which are common injuries with debilitating effects and long-term consequences.

Humanetics expertise and knowledge of these advanced ATD’s is unique given our role in the engineering design of the ATD’s and the aptitude with the integrated materials that ensure test accuracy and precision. We are excited that after over 10 years of development, thousands of crash tests, and the delivery of many hundreds of devices that the next generation of ATD’s is being brought into action in the U.S. This will help contribute to improved safety of vehicle occupants.

Other passive safety targets announced in the Spring 2022 agenda include amendments to the Hybrid III 5th Percentile Female Test Dummy (2127-AM13) and the amendment to FMVSS No. 210 to Incorporate the use of a new Force Application Device (FAD) (2127-AL05), both in the Final Rule stage and scheduled for December 2022 and April 2023 respectively.

Additionally, NHTSA has issued the Final Rule updating testing requirements for child safety seats for side-impact crashes, improving the protection of children during traffic crashes. This final rule incorporates the Q3s child side impact ATD into FMVSS 213, “Child restraint systems” for a new side impact sled test replicating a 30-mph collision.