ford introduces industry's first inflatable seat belts to enhance rear
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8/14/2019 Ford Introduces Industry's First Inflatable Seat Belts to Enhance Rear
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FORD INTRODUCES INDUSTRY'S FIRST INFLATABLE SEATBELTS TO ENHANCE REAR SEAT SAFETY
Ford introduces the auto industry’s first-ever production inflatable seat belts, which are
designed to provide additional protection for rear-seat occupants, often children
and older passengers who can be more vulnerable to head, chest and neckinjuries
Ford’s inflatable rear seat belts will debut on the next-generation Ford Explorer sport
utility vehicle, which goes into production next year; Ford eventually plans to offer
inflatable seat belt technology in vehicles globally
Ford’s inflatable rear seat belts spread crash forces over five times more area of the
body than conventional seat belts; this helps reduce pressure on the chest and
helps control head and neck motion for rear seat passengers
More than 90 percent of Ford research participants indicated that Ford’s inflatable seat
belts are similar to or more comfortable than traditional belts, which could help
increase the lower rate of rear belt usage
DEARBORN, Mich., Nov. 5, 2009 – Ford Motor Company is bringing to market the
world’s first automotive inflatable seat belts, combining attributes of traditional seat belts
and air bags to provide an added level of crash safety protection for rear seat
occupants.
The advanced restraint system is designed to help reduce head, neck and chest injuries
for rear seat passengers, often children and older passengers who can be more
vulnerable to such injuries.
Ford will introduce inflatable rear seat belts on the next-generation Ford Explorer, which
goes into production next year for the North American market. Over time, Ford plans to
offer the technology in vehicles globally.
“Ford’s rear inflatable seat belt technology will enhance safety for rear-seat passengers
of all ages, especially for young children who are more vulnerable in crashes,” said Sue
Cischke, Ford group vice president of Sustainability, Environmental and Safety
Engineering. “This is another unique family technology that builds on our safety
leadership, including the most top safety ratings of any automaker.”
Safer and more comfortableAdvances in air bag inflation and seat beltconstruction methods have enabled Ford and its suppliers to develop inflatable seat
belts that are designed to deploy over a vehicle occupant’s torso and shoulder in 40
milliseconds in the event of a crash.
In everyday use, the inflatable belts operate like conventional seat belts and are safe
and compatible with infant and children safety car and booster seats. In Ford’s
research, more than 90 percent of those who tested the inflatable seat belts found them
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to be similar to or more comfortable than a conventional belt because they feel padded
and softer. That comfort factor could help improve the 61 percent rear belt usage rate in
the U.S., which compares to 82 percent usage by front seat passengers, according
to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data.
“Ford is pioneering inflatable seat belt technology to help enhance crash safetyprotection, while encouraging more people to buckle up with a more comfortable belt,”
said Paul Mascarenas, Ford vice president, Engineering, Global Product Development.
In the event of a frontal or side crash, the inflatable belt’s increased diameter more
effectively holds the occupant in the appropriate seating position, helping to reduce the
risk of injury.
Vehicle safety sensors determine the severity of the collision in the blink of an eye and
deploy the inflatable belts’ air bags. Each belt’s tubular air bag inflates with cold
compressed gas, which flows through a specially designed buckle from a cylinder
housed below the seat.
The inflatable belt’s accordion-folded bag breaks through the belt fabric as it fills with
air, expanding sideways across the occupant’s body in about the same amount of time it
takes a car traveling at highway speed to cover a yard of distance.
The use of cold compressed gas instead of a heat-generating chemical reaction – which
is typical of traditional air bag systems – means the inflated belts feel no warmer on the
wearer’s body than the ambient temperature. The inflatable belts also fill at a lower
pressure and a slower rate than traditional air bags, because the device does not need
to close a gap between the belt and the occupant.
“It’s a very simple and logical system, but it required extensive trial and error and testing
over several years to prove out the technology and ensure precise reliable performance
in a crash situation,” said Srini Sundararajan, safety technical leader for Ford research
and advance engineering.
The inflated belt helps distribute crash force energy across five times more of the
occupant’s torso than a traditional belt, which expands its range of protection and
reduces risk of injury by diffusing crash pressure over a larger area, while providing
additional support to the head and neck. After deployment, the belt remains inflated for
several seconds before dispersing its air through the pores of the air bag.
Ford’s safety leadership record continues to growThe inflatable seat belt
debuting on the next-generation Ford Explorer continues Ford’s record of safety
innovation. Ford today has more 5-star U.S. government ratings and “Top Safety Picks”
from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety than any other automaker.
Ford was the first automaker to introduce seat belts in 1955 and led the way in making
driver and front-passenger air bags standard in most vehicles by 1993.
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This year, Ford introduced radar-enabled Adaptive Cruise Control with Collision
Warning with Brake Support and Blind Spot Information System (BLIS®) with Cross
Traffic Alert (CTA). These technologies – introduced on the new 2010 Ford Taurus and
Fusion – help drivers avoid potential dangerous crash situations using radar to detect
the relative position of other vehicles and warn the driver with a combination of visual
and audio alerts.
Ford’s other recent seat belt and air bag innovations include the industry-first BeltMinder
system in 2000, which the U.S. government credited with increasing front belt usage by
5 percent in Ford vehicles. On the 2002 Explorer, Ford launched the industry’s first
rollover-activated side curtain air bags – called Safety Canopy – as well as Roll Stability
Control technology that goes a step beyond traditional stability control systems by
helping measure and prevent side-to-side skidding and dangerous situations that could
lead to rollovers.
Ford also introduced on the 2009 F-150 and 2010 Taurus some of the industry’s first
pressure-based air bag technologies that help deploy side air bags up to 30 percentfaster.