“Key changes will advance safety for vehicle occupants and pedestrians and help consumers make informed decisions on new vehicle purchases” - NHTSA

Last week NHTSA published a long-awaited update to the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). It includes many significant changes and additions for Automated Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS) & Pedestrian Safety updates and a roadmap outlining future changes in the next 10 years.

Notable changes to the program

There are several notable changes to the program provided by this recent update, including:

  • The addition of four advanced driver assistance technologies that will enhance crash-avoidance safety: pedestrian automatic emergency braking, lane keeping assist, blind spot warning and blind spot intervention.
  • The addition of a crashworthiness pedestrian protection program to evaluate the ability of a vehicle’s front end to mitigate pedestrian injuries and fatalities in vehicle-to-pedestrian impacts.
  • Midterm and long-term roadmaps – including THOR and WorldSID - to accommodate future updates amid ongoing research and technological advancements in vehicle safety, including crash avoidance and crashworthiness improvements to protect bicyclists and motorcyclists and an updated rating system.
NHTSA NCAP Updates Key Updates Overview

The NCAP Roadmap

Including Vulnerable Road Users

Responding to the alarming 57% increase in pedestrian fatalities from 2013 to 2022, NHTSA is implementing a groundbreaking crashworthiness pedestrian protection program. This initiative will evaluate how effectively a vehicle's front-end design can mitigate injuries in pedestrian impacts, marking a significant shift towards holistic road safety.

NHTSA's vision extends far beyond immediate changes, outlining a 10-year roadmap to keep pace with rapid advancements in vehicle safety technology. View our summary of the NCAP Final Rule and Roadmap Summary.

What action do I need to take?

ADAS and VRU Tests
NHTSA Driver Assist technology updates

NHTSA’s new enhanced requirements clearly outline the active safety features that will contribute to delivering crash prevention outcomes. 

  1. Humanetics has a complete portfolio of the integrated hardware and software test platforms (Cars, pedestrians, motorcycles) needed to test ADAS features. They come loaded with software libraries of pre-programed NCAP scenarios.
  2. We additionally have developed Trackbase Connect™, which is a complete Proving Ground management system that maximizes the number of tests that can be performed on the proving ground.
Next Generation ATDs

Male Occupant Protection

With the final rule imminent for THOR-50M and WorldSID-50M ready for implementation in 2027, ATD customers and engineering teams have just 24 months to ensure they have enough ATD’s, and experience with the advanced ATDs, in both Frontal and Frontal Oblique tests, to address test schedules.

NHTSA ATD Updates - Male ATDs

Female Occupant Protection

For THOR-05F and WordlSID-05F, NHTSA has said that the final evaluation is near completion (which was due to be complete in Q1 2024). NHTSA’s stated ambition is to ensure that women’s safety is not disadvantaged. Realistically engineers should immediately start to use the THOR-05F in safety tests to understand what changes need to be made in vehicle design, as this will be the first time that US NCAP will address the highest standards of 5-star safety for female drivers. 

With a 2029 implementation date for THOR-05F set in Euro NCAP, and then US NCAP will follow later, the engineering groundwork needed to demonstrate success for females in driver seat Frontal crashes should start in 2025.

It is possible that once the THOR-05F testing is finalized there is an option to accelerate its adoption into NCAP, replacing the Hybrid III 5th percentile.

NHTSA ATD Updates - Female ATDs

It is possible that once the THOR-05F testing is finalized there is an option to accelerate its adoption into NCAP, replacing the Hybrid III 5th percentile.

Planning and preparation

We have a planning model that calculates which ATD’s, CAE models, Active Safety platforms, how many, and what spare parts, are needed to execute the regulation and NCAP tests given customer’s unique product development volumes. 

Please reach out to your Humanetics representative and they can help you model your requirements and ensure you have the hardware and software you need.

View the NHTSA NCAP Final Ruling and Roadmap Summary  for the Top Key Take-Aways. 

Join the many OEMs already leveraging ATDs and virtual models to stay ahead of the curve and ensure they’re fully prepared for the years to come.

Learn About the U.S. NCAP Final Decisions and Roadmap

This live webinar will cover the significant enhancements to Automated Driving Assistance Systems (ADAS) and pedestrian safety, featuring new technologies such as pedestrian automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping assist, and blind spot interventions. 

Barney Loehnis

Barney Loehnis

Barney is the President of Humanetics Sensors & Chief Marketing Officer, leading our Sensor group and marketing growth programs, strategic communications, and customer experience design. He has led marketing and digital transformations in Europe, Asia and the USA in B2B, B2C and agency sectors, for clients like IBM, VW, Huawei, Qualcomm and Mercer Consulting. Barney is a British and American citizen, a bad runner and avid cook.