In a move aimed at developing safer vehicles, Toyota will be utilising new additions to its Total Human Model for Safety (THUMS) virtual crash dummy software in an attempt to eliminate traffic fatalities and injuries while making an even more diverse range of testing possible.
Toyota has added three new models to represent children aged 10, six, and three to Version 4 of the software. THUMS allows injuries sustained by human bodies during vehicle crashes to be simulated on the computer.
Takayuki Yoshitsugu, Toyota’s chief representative, Middle East and North Africa Representative Office, said: “The addition of the new child models provides a valuable tool in the development of safer vehicles.”
The equipment forecasts the extent of injuries sustained throughout the human body, and the information is used in the technological development of passenger protection devices such as airbags and to contribute to improved vehicle safety performance.
THUMS is also increasingly being used in the field of motor sports. For example, it has been used by NASCAR, the US-based National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, to analyse high-speed impacts, leading to better seat structure design to reduce the likelihood of rib fractures sustained by drivers as a result of racing accidents.
The 10-year old (138cm tall), six-year old (118cm tall) and three-year old (94cm tall) additions to THUMS Version 4 represent the average physique of children at each respective age.
As with the large male (189cm tall), average-build adult male (179cm tall), and smaller female (153cm tall) models that are already being sold, the new models will come in two versions - a passenger version and a pedestrian version - for a total of six new additions to the THUMS line-up. This expanded line-up takes into consideration the influence of age and physique, and allows for a more thorough injury analysis.
For more details on the range of Toyota vehicles contact E K Kanoo on 17730730 or call into the Sitra showroom.
