Affiliations: University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children's Hospital,
Ann Arbor, MI, USA | University of Michigan Transportation Research
Institute, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Note: [] Corresponding author: Lori Brinkey, 1500 E. Medical Center
Drive, Room F2593, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5224, USA. Tel.: +1 734 763 2554; Fax:
+1 734 936 9552; E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract: Commercial automotive child restraint systems (CRSs) do not
accommodate all children with special healthcare needs. This study developed an
alternative harness for a commercial CRS to meet the needs of children for whom
a five-point harness cannot be positioned over medically involved areas and/or
children whose conditions require the harness belts to be threaded through
medical devices. After initial design work and a series of frontal sled-impact
tests, one of two prototype designs was chosen for fit testing on children with
and without healthcare conditions. After a minor modification, additional
sled-impact testing was conducted to determine compliance of the system to
federal standards. The CRS with alternate harness provides good fit to children
with a variety of healthcare needs and complies with all performance criteria
of FMVSS 213, with the exception of peak forward head excursion using the
Hybrid III 6-year-old crash-test dummy. It is expected that all performance
criteria will be met using the newly-issued federal allowance to conduct CRS
frontal-impact tests using an earlier version of the dummy. The new harness
shows promise as a low-cost solution for achieving a safer level of
transportation for children who may otherwise travel unrestrained or with a
severely misused CRS harness.
Keywords: Children with special healthcare needs, child safety seats, child restraint systems, child passenger protection, omphalocele, hip spica, shoulder spica, Halo
