MercedesCelebratesItsCrashTestDummies
This page is translated from the original post "Mercedes met ses mannequins de Crash Test à l’honneur" in French.
- 30/11/2023 15:55
Anonymous heroes who contributed to saving so many lives, crash test mannequins are exhibited at the Mercedes-Benz Museum
No, these are not mannequins, but measurement instruments. The four crash test mannequins at the Mercedes-Benz Museum, located in Legend Room 5 “Visionaries – Safety and Environment, 1960 to 1982”, are ambassadors of vehicle safety. Mercedes-Benz has been conducting crash tests for over 60 years. The mannequins have been used almost from the beginning. These tests ensure that new generations of vehicles meet high safety standards.
Crash test mannequins are extremely sensitive measuring tools, essential for vehicle safety. Dedicated to safety development, their bodies are subjected to situations that humans would never want to experience. All collision scenarios are inspired by real accidents. The mannequins are tested with a simulator that accelerates, decelerates, and then crashes. Repeatedly, tirelessly, day after day, year after year.
The mannequins at the Mercedes-Benz Museum are of the Hybrid II 50 type. The number indicates that 50% of North American adult men are smaller and lighter, while 50% are taller and heavier! The Hybrid II 50 was approved for testing restraint systems in the United States in 1973, 50 years ago. Mercedes-Benz has been using it for several decades. Each of the maximum 80 sensors has its own connection cable to measurement technology.
Today, modern descendants of the Hybrid II 50 are used. Each has up to 150 different sensors that, thanks to digital technology, can be connected with a single common cable. The mannequins have a lot to do: the Mercedes-Benz Vehicle Safety Technology Center in Sindelfingen conducts up to 900 crash tests per year on its three crash lanes. For this, 120 measurement mannequins are available, prepared and maintained by technicians. Mercedes-Benz has been using female mannequins for over 20 years. Mannequins representing children of various ages are also available.
Internal sensors within the mannequins provide data such as accelerations, torques, compression trajectories, angular forces, and deformations. On the exterior, exposed objects bear adhesive marks at head level. These reference points help analyze crash test recordings, which are displayed on a screen next to the mannequins at the museum. Today, high-speed cameras record crash tests at 1,000 frames per second to enable detailed analysis.
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