Vehicle safetyIncreasing active and passive safetyThe data and information assembled in this report clearly show that, contrary to the general trend of falling numbers of fatalities and seriouslyinjured road users in Europe, among motorcyclists these numbers have stagnated at a relatively high level for a number of years. There ispotential for optimisation: in terms of the motorcycle, in matters of protective clothing, as regards road infrastructure and, last but not least,the road users themselves. Numerous EU road safety projects show this to be the case.In contrast to passenger car drivers, motorcyclistsare exposed to a much higher riskin road traffic. This is due to the differentdriving physics, the always delicate state ofequilibrium, and the special physical andpsychological strain that motorcyclists areunder. At the same time, motorcyclists aremuch more sensitive to climatic influencesand other disruptive factors, such as roadconditions and unforeseeable traffic situations.In addition, a motorcycle does nothave any protective bodywork. So motorcyclistsare unprotected when they collideor fall, even if they are wearing protectiveclothing. And, more importantly, seriousaccidents often prove fatal.Therefore, there is urgent need foraction – each injured or fatally injuredmotorcyclist is one too many. For decadesthere have been intensive efforts at alllevels with regard to increased roadsafety for motorcyclists. The EuropeanCommission has introduced, and isstill introducing, new projects aimed atimproving the systems of active and passivesafety. An example of such a projectis “APROSYS” (Advanced PROtectionSYStems), which involved 46 partners(universities, research institutions, suppliersand manufacturers) from twelveEuropean countries. One such partnerwas DEKRA. The “Integrated Project onImproved Protection Systems” concerneditself with scientific and technologicaldevelopments in the domain of passivesafety – focusing on human biomechanics,the crash performance of vehicles andinfrastructure, and on protection systemsfor vehicle occupants, motorcyclists andother road users.Measures and strategies for twowheeledmotor vehicles were included inthe scope of subproject 4 (SP 4), whichdealt with motorcycle accidents. Theaim of this subproject was to reduce thenumber and severity of the injuries sufferedby road users in accidents involvingtwo-wheeled motor vehicles for the most
There is a wide variety of safety helmets for motorcyclists. The integral, full-face helmet offers the best protection. However, with the classic jet helmet,the chin is unprotected.important types of accidents. To this end,accidents that had actually happened invarious EU states were analysed in depthand the injuries resulting from the differentimpact velocities were examined,with interest being focused on “forgiving”road design and layout as well as protectivesystems for motorcyclists.PROTECTIVE SYSTEMS THAT LEAVEMUCH TO BE DESIREDThe aforementioned accident scenariosconfirmed the results of earlier studies,which found that motorcycle and/or caraccidents can often be attributed to errorsin perception. The most common types ofaccident are head-on collisions betweenmotorcycles and cars as well as the lateralimpact of a motorcyclist against a car.Avoidance measures taken by motorcyclists,such as braking or swerving,are often unsuccessful. Where injuriessustained by riders of two-wheeled motorvehicles were caused by contact with a car,these injuries were usually serious or fatal.Where riders of two-wheeled motor vehiclescollided with infrastructural facilities,the majority of obstacles – especiallyin accidents with serious consequences– were trees, pillars, and safety barriers.Other impact objects were posts as well asthe carriageway itself. The initial impactwas often against an infrastructuralfacility. Impact against safety barriers inparticular frequently led to serious injuries.Collisions with obstacles led, withparticular frequency, to head injuries,with injuries to the lower extremities beingalmost as common.In order to determine the effectivenessof safety devices for drivers oftwo-wheeled motor vehicles, crash testsand paired comparisons between dummieswith and without protective equipmentwere carried out in four protectionstages as part of the APROSYS project.The impact velocities chosen for thispurpose were 0 to 35 km/h, 36 to 70 km/hand more than 70 km/h. Even at speedsof up to 35 km/h the loads acting on thedummy indicated a risk of serious, criticalor life-threatening injuries to the head,chest, pelvis and upper extremities. Ananalysis of the loads acting on the spinalcolumn attested to the effectiveness ofprotective clothing in reducing both theseverity of the injuries and the numberof injuries resulting from accidents in allspeed ranges.HELMET AND CHEST PROTECTOROne of the results of the APROSYSproject is the conclusion that the protectionprovided by currently available,very safe helmets can by optimised evenfurther. At the moment, helmets have topass a series of impact tests in accordancewith the applicable regulations, especiallyECE Regulation 22 as amendedby the 05 series of amendments (ECE-R 22-05). However, this standardonly takes partial account of specificviolations on the basis of turning andacceleration effects. Therefore, theCentre for Innovation and Safety at theUniversity of Florence (CISAP) developeda prototype helmet with a moving,thermoplastic and reinforced fibreglasschin part, which is supported by meansof a honeycomb structure on the left andright of the helmet shell and thereforeacts like a crash box. On impact, thehead acceleration and the forces actingon the chin straps could therefore bereduced. In the opinion of the CISAP,The GermanRoad Traffic Act(StVO) prescribesthe wearing of asuitable helmet.DEKRA explicitlyrecommends that,when buying a newhelmet, motorcyclistsshould ensure thatit has passed theECE-R 22-05 test.The relevant markingcan be found onthe interior paddingand the chinstrap.36 | 37
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