Insights into Tissue Surrogates for Anthropomorphic Test Devices and the Impact of Preservation Techniques Theses uri icon

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abstract

  • Anthropomorphic Test Devices (ATDs, or ‘crash test dummies’) are pivotal tools in biomechanical research, simulating human responses to impact and used to evaluate safety systems. However, the common materials used to represent soft tissue (muscle & fat), a vinyl and urethane foam composite, have recently been shown to inadequately replicate human tissue’s biomechanical properties. This is important as injury is assessed with sensors in the ‘skeleton’, and forces may be over-attenuated by inaccurate soft tissue surrogates. The objective of this study was to identify materials that closely mimic human forearm tissue biomechanics for potential use in future ATDs. Porcine hind leg tissue was purchased from a local butcher, and urethane foams, urethane elastomers, and silicone elastomers were obtained from Sawbones (Pacific Research Labs, Vashon, WA, USA). All samples were subject to indentation and unconfined compression tests at three strain rates (quasi-static, moderate, and high-rate), with a tri-linear fit model applied to the measured stress and strain results. Material testing revealed the fact that foams displayed a nonlinear response to deformation, while the silicones and urethanes demonstrated closer to linear elastic behavior. The foams also exhibited responses more similar to human tissue at quasi-static and moderate strain rates while the silicones demonstrated more similar modulus values at high strain rates. These findings underscore the importance of selecting materials that accurately replicate human tissue behavior under different loading conditions.