The aim of this book is to present pedestrian injuries from a biomechanical perspective. We aim to give a detailed treatment of the physics of pedestrian impact, as well as a review of the accident databases and the relevant injury criteria used to assess pedestrian injuries. A further focus will be the effects on injury outcome of (1) pedestrian/vehicle position and velocity at impact and (2) the influence of vehicle design on injury outcome. Most of the content of this book has been published by these and other authors in various journals, but this book will provide a comprehensive treatment of the biomechanics of pedestrian impacts for the first time. It will therefore be of value to new and established researchers alike.

The aim of this book is to present pedestrian injuries from a biomechanical perspective. We aim to give a detailed treatment of the physics of pedestrian impact, as well as a review of the accident databases and the relevant injury criteria used to assess pedestrian injuries. A further focus will be the effects on injury outcome of (1) pedestrian/vehicle position and velocity at impact and (2) the influence of vehicle design on injury outcome. Most of the content of this book has been published by these and other authors in various journals, but this book will provide a comprehensive treatment of the biomechanics of pedestrian impacts for the first time. It will therefore be of value to new and established researchers alike.

Whiplash injuries occur due to differential accelerations in the human body. Neck injuries predominate, but a considerable body of clinical evidence suggesting a close relationship between whiplash and Temporo-Mandibular Joint (TMJ) disorders has also accumulated. However, the potential injury mechanisms are poorly understood. This book presents the development of sled-testing of a physical model of the head, neck and mandible designed to simulate in vivo behaviour in a low velocity rear end collision. The sled test results are combined with tensile tests on cadaveric TMJ specimens to show that excessive levels of mouth opening do not occur during low velocity whiplash conditions. Active bracing of the jaw muscles prevents mouth opening. A two-dimensional computational model was also developed, showing good correspondence to the experimental tests. A parametric analysis using the model indicated that normal geometric variations are unlikely to significantly alter the predicted results from the experimental testing. The results from this work conflict with the inertial injury theory for the TMJ during whiplash.