For almost a decade Ford has been working on the reality of protecting the rear seat passengers a bit more than they are now. The inflatable seat belt will be coming out as a option on the next- generation in the new Ford Explorers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says only 83% of front seat passengers buckle up on a regular basis in 2008 versus 74% of rear seat passengers. Sue Cischke, group vice president of sustainability, environmental and safety engineering, states; “"It feels a lot different; it's softer and more lightly woven and when we asked people to sample them, they said it feels less rigid and more comfortable.” The new belts expand like an air bag in accidents or any type of crash. The belts will distribute the force over more of the chest area, so it is less concentrated in one area. This has been a project in the making since 2001; it has survived the financial issues in 2005 when ford disposed of thousands of employees. Srini Sundararajan, technical leader of Ford’s research and advanced engineering division, "We've developed so much technology for the front-seat occupants, we want to bring some of these advanced technologies from the front seat to the rear seat.”
I was very happy to hear as I read this article that they are trying to protect our precious cargo we all carry in the back seats of our vehicles, children, parents, grandparents. These are all things that should be as protected as we who drive them. My excitement after reading this article didn’t change if anything it allows me to have hope for the future cars and passengers.
As Mr. Sundararajan stated, “It's a vulnerable population, like elderly and children, who sit back there. And we believe this is the best way to enhance safety for the rear-seat occupants,” this gives us all hope that when the worst happens there is a bit more protection for all. This was a wonderful article to read and it made me very happy to hear the advances for the future is constantly being perfected.
The more I read this article that I found on http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2009-11-05-ford-inflatable-seat-belts_N.htm it made my hopes for my grandchildren and my future great children will have a little more protection than I did or my children did. It amazes me what new things are invented as each day passes. I would like to see the automobile companies come out with a little bit longer seat belts for the larger society of
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It is nice to hear they are working on improving the back seat safety. I wish they would work on placing harnesses in the back seats to replace older children's car seats. It is very near impossible to place 3 car seats in the back. Children now have to be in a car seat until they turn 8 years old.
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