Evaluation of wheelchair drop seat crashworthiness

Wheelchair seating crash performance is critical to protecting wheelchair u sers who remain seated in their wheelchairs during transportation. Relying upon computer simulation and sled testing seat loads associated with a 20 g /48 kph (20 g/30 mph) frontal impact and 50th percentile male occupant were estimated to develop test criteria. Using a static test setup we evaluated the performance of various types of commercially available drop seats agai nst the loading test criteria. Five different types of drop seats (two spec imens each) constructed of various materials (i.e. plastics, plywood, metal ) were evaluated. Two types of drop seats (three of the total 10 specimens) met the 16 650 N (3750 Ib) frontal impact test criteria. While additional validation of the test protocol is necessary, this study suggests that some drop seat designs may be incapable of withstanding crash level loads. (C) 2001 IPEM. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.