UVA researchers drive safety forward on 3 Toyota collaborative projects

The Center for Applied Biomechanics at the University of Virginia studies the impact of car crashes on the human body, aiming to improve injury prevention. Funded by Toyota’s Collaborative Safety Research Center, CAB’s three newest projects will study rib, lumbar and ankle injuries specifically. 

Jason Forman, a UVA Engineering and Applied Science research associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, is the principal investigator on two of the studies. 

One study will use virtual simulations to measure injuries in human models, with the goal of developing a standardized process for predicting rib fractures in near- and far-side collisions.

The second study, a joint project between the center and University of Michigan Health, will use crash dummies to predict different ankle injury risks among a more diverse driver population. The study will use a tool developed from a previous project to simulate hundreds of combinations of body shape and crash characteristics, then match those conditions to virtual dummies. 

“We’re honored and grateful for our continuing collaboration with Toyota on these important projects,” Forman said. “Together, these projects will advance safety for all people, through continuing to expand our understanding of the fundamental biomechanics of the human body and how person-to-person variability can influence injury risk in an automobile collision.” 

Jason Kerrigan, the center’s director and also an associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, is the principal investigator on the third study, which will look at how to better assess back injuries in crashes by using simulations of humans and crash dummies to inform new lumbar spine injury prediction measures.