Automakers Use Better Dummies in Tests

A General Motors new i-Dummies test dummy is exposed to show the recorder the size of a cell phone located on the back of the spine at the automaker's proving grounds in Milford, Mich., Dec. 15, 2006. The i-Dummies, made by Plymouth, Mich.-based First Technology Safety Systems, are being used in GM's new rollover testing facility and helps engineers learn more about injuries to the head, neck, chest and pelvis. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio) (Carlos Osorio - AP)

WASHINGTON -- When General Motors Corp. engineer Jack Jensen started working with crash test dummies in the 1990s, the data collected from the devices was routed to recorders the size of a phone booth.

But like most forms of technology, the instruments are getting smaller. The company recently bought five devices, called i-Dummies, that collect data in a recorder the size of a cell phone located on the back of the dummy's spine.

"It shaves off some of the time. It makes for a cleaner installation of dummies in the vehicle _ it just simplifies the process," said Jensen, GM's engineering group manager in charge of the automaker's anthropomorphic test devices at its Milford, Mich., proving grounds.

Automakers conduct hundreds of crash tests every year to assess the safety of their vehicles and evaluate their vehicles' compliance with federal regulations. In recent years, the time-consuming and delicate process of conducting crash tests has been getting a little easier thanks to improved sensors and instrumentation on the dummies.

The i-Dummies, made by Plymouth, Mich.-based First Technology Safety Systems, are being used in GM's new rollover testing facility and helps engineers learn more about injuries to the head, neck, chest and pelvis.

In the past, engineers setting up the tests had a number of sensors connected to the dummies that were channeled into a data recorder either outside the vehicle or inside the trunk. The additional lines made it difficult to position the dummy properly and added weight.

The new approach eliminates umbilical cords and allows the data to be quickly switched from one dummy to another, expediting the testing process.

"It's definitely made things a lot easier. We can literally move a dummy from one facility to another with very minimal effort and you can run a test in a half hour," said Ford Motor Co.'s Risa Scherer, who helped develop the technology through the World SID project, an advanced side-impact dummy.

The sensors used in the crash testing have also gotten smaller, offering a more comprehensive evaluation of potential injuries in a crash. One of these is the accelerometer, which used to be smaller than a square 9-volt battery but has been downsized to about half the size of a fingertip, said David Zuby, senior vice president for vehicle research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Zuby said the smaller sensors allow for additional room on the dummy, giving engineers the ability to access more data in a crash test. They typically take multiple measurements on the head, but the smaller sensors provide extra room to study the rotational movement of the head and brain, helping them to better assess the risk of brain injuries.

The data also supports computer modeling, which has been used by automakers in recent years to help them learn what happens to a body in a crash.

More advances are on the way. Zuby said an improved dummy called Bio-RID offers a detailed spinal column, down to the individual vertebrae, that helps scientists study whiplash injuries.