Working Party on Passive Safety | Session 55 | 19-23 May 2014
Geneva
Agenda Item 21.
Proposal for a new Regulation on Frontal Impact

37. The expert from France, Chair of the FI IWG, introduced the status report of the group (GRSP-55-43) as well as the latest amendments (GRSP-55-20-Rev.1) to the official proposal (ECE/TRANS/WP.29/GRSP/2014/10) of a new UN Regulation on frontal impact with focus on the restraint system. He added that the IWG focused on two possible scenarios for the threshold of front passenger’s thorax compression criteria:
(a) thorax compression criteria (Thcc) of ≤ 34 mm (considering the injury risk curve for the elderly 5th percentile female);
(b) Thcc ≤ 42 mm (considering the injury risk curve for the 5th percentile female).

38. He asked GRSP for guidance on choosing the scenario to be addressed by the draft UN Regulation. The expert from EC suggested that the first scenario complemented by an additional test (e.g. sled test) with a 95th percentile male dummy. However, the expert from France reminded GRSP that the proposal aimed to reduce the number of tests. The expert from OICA presented a recommendation (GRSP-55-42) for a Thcc ≤ 42 mm to address the 5th percentile female because a Thcc of ≤ 34 mm would only address a limited percentage of the population and because the test tool variations need to be taken into account. He remarked that the higher injury risk for elderly occupants would be considered by a reduced Thcc threshold of 42 mm for the 50th percentile male dummy Hybrid III as was also proposed for UN Regulation No. 94. GRSP finally agreed to resume consideration of this agenda item at its December 2014 session and requested its experts to provide clear guidance on the two above-mentioned scenarios. The secretariat was requested to distribute GRSP-55-20-Rev.1 with an official symbol at the next session of GRSP.

Documentation
GRSP-55-20/Rev.1 Proposal to amend the draft new regulation on frontal impact protection focused on occupant restraint systems
GRSP-55-42 UN Frontal Impact Requirements: Consideration of elderly and female occupants (OICA)
GRSP-55-43 Status report of the Informal Group on Frontal Impact Protection
GRSP/2014/10 Draft new Regulation on the protection of the occupants in the event of a frontal collision with a focus on the restraint system