Auto safety features protect pedestrians
When pedestrians are struck by cars travelling forward, one of the most common causes of injury is the pedestrian’s head hitting the hood of the vehicle. Because the hood is relatively thin and sits just above the engine, the pedestrian’s head motion is stopped by the engine itself as the hood dents. Because the engine is made of heavy, durable metal, it cannot disperse the force of the impact. The result is that most of the energy from that impact is reflected back to the pedestrian. In response to this danger, Toyota has been working to develop a car- body structure that helps absorb the impact to the human head during a collision of this kind. By absorbing the impact, this system reduces the amount of energy being reflected back, reducing the degree of injury to the pedestrian. This safety technology is known as the pedestrian impactabsorbing body ( PIB). Its benefits also apply to cyclists. One key element of PIB is a waveshaped panel that runs longitudinally from the front to the back on the inner side of the hood. This wave- shaped panel is designed to uniformly absorb the impact to help reduce injury. It complements an impact- absorbing structure in the car’s front bumper that also reduces injury. The second element is what is known as the pop- up hood. Like the wave- shaped panel, the pop- up hood is meant to reduce the amount of energy experienced upon impact. It does this by popping up the hood from the back as the impact occurs. This increases the distance between the hood and the engine, allowing space for the hood to dent without touching the engine block. “When a pedestrian comes into contact with the vehicle, the pressure sensor embedded in the front bumper measures the change in pressure,” says Seigo Kuzumaki, secretary of chief safety technology officer, Toyota Motor Corporation. “If the engine control unit determines that it is necessary to raise the hood, the actuators instantly raise the rear of the hood creating space between the hood and the hard parts under the hood such as the engine. This helps reduce injuries to the pedestrian.” The pop- up hood and pedestrian impact- absorbing body are two safety features being developed by Toyota under its integrated safety management concept ( ISMC). Another is Toyota’s use of body designs that give way when in collision with pedestrians but retain their shape when hitting a rigid pole or other roadside obstacle. Tasked with eliminating traffic injuries, ISMC covers every aspect of driving from parking and active safety procedures during driving, to pre- collision damage mitigation, passive safety measures to protect the passengers such as seatbelts and airbags, and contacting emergency services for help. These safety technologies work collaboratively, rather than individually, for maximum effectiveness. The federal Public Health Agency of Canada ( PHAC) took a closer look at pedestrian injuries in its 2012 report, Injury in Review, 2012 Edition: Spotlight on Road and Transport Safety. Based on PHAC’s analysis of injuries to non- powered vulnerable road users ( pedestrians and cyclists), people on foot experience 70% of accidents in this category. “Pedestrians and bicyclists are among the most vulnerable of road users,” says Robyn Robertson, president and chief executive officer at the Traffic Injury Research Foundation ( TIRF), a charitable, independent Canadian research institute dedicated to reducing roadrelated fatalities and injuries. “In collisions with other road users, they have less protection from physical harm than occupants of vehicles.” Toyota’s product innovation has been recognized by many industry and consumer awards. In 2013, the company’s vehicles won a variety of Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick awards, two ecoEnergy awards for fuel efficiency, and a number of Canadian Black Book Retained Value Awards and ALG Residual Value Awards. As well, Reader’s Digest Canadian readers selected Toyota as their most trusted brand of automaker in 2013, the fifth straight year that Toyota has won this consumervoted award. “It is an honour to receive these awards, which reflect how we consistently deliver the highquality, safe, affordable, and fun- to- drive cars that Canadians demand,” says Seiji Ichii, president and CEO, Toyota Canada Inc.