INTRODUCTION - Injury Biomechanics and Control: Optimal Protection from Impact - page 14

development of optimization techniques for shock isolators, were indicated.
An extensive bibliography was included.
In 2001, they published a paper that characterized the trends and first
results of using optimal control techniques to evaluate the limiting capa-
bilities of the protection from impact-induced injuries by means of shock
isolators (Balandin, Bolotnik, and Pilkey, 2001). At that time, studies in
this field had just been started at the University of Virginia and some other
research institutions. Problems related to the optimal design of a crash-
worthy helicopter seat, automobile seat belts, and sporting helmets were
discussed.
Cheng et al. (2005a and 2005b) gave an overview of optimization tech-
niques to investigate the limiting performance and to identify the design
variables of biomechanical systems for injury control. A biomechanical
system involves a vehicle, an occupant (or dummies in crash tests), and
safety equipment such as seat belts, padding, or air bags. Basic approaches,
such as limiting performance analysis, parametric optimization of injury
control devises, best and worst disturbance analyses to evaluate the range
of responses of the occupant to impact pulses of the vehicle from a pre-
scribed class, and sensitivity analysis of the response criteria to variations
in the control parameters, are characterized. Basic injury models of differ-
ent degrees of complexity, from few-degree-of-freedom analytical models
to multibody and finite-element models, are outlined and software packages
that implement these models are indicated. Computational techniques for
simulation and optimization of biomechanical systems are discussed.
REFERENCES
Bai, C. Q., Morris, R. A., Sieveka, E. M., Crandall, J. R., Cheng, Z. Q., and
Pilkey, W. D., 1999, A study of standards for child restraint systems for impact
tests, International Journal of Crashworthiness , Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 59 - 70.
Balandin, D. V., Belozerov, A. S., and Bolotnik, N. N., 2008, Limiting performance
analysis of the protection of the human head from impact-induced injuries taking
into account the duration of the shock pulse, Journal of Computer and Systems
Science International , Vol. 47, No. 1, pp. 355 - 370.
Balandin, D. V., and Bolotnik, N. N., 2002, Limiting performance analysis of
helmets for head injury prevention, Journal of Computer and Systems Sciences
International , Vol. 47, No. 1, pp. 149 - 156.
Balandin, D. V., Bolotnik, N. N., Crandall J. R., Pilkey, W. D., and Purtsezov, S. V.,
2007, Optimal impact isolation for injury prevention evaluated by the head injury
criterion, Shock and Vibration , Vol. 14, pp. 355 - 370.
Balandin, D. V., Bolotnik, N. N., and Pilkey, W. D., 1998, Review: Optimal shock
and vibration isolation, Shock and Vibration , Vol. 5, pp. 73 - 87.