Vehicle safety Innovations to reduce Personal Injury

Automobile accidents have resulted in serious injuries and deaths from the beginning of their creation. There are reports that as early as the late 1890’s, gasoline-powered ‘buggies’ often crashed and caused passenger and/or pedestrian fatalities.  Even before this, passengers or drivers riding in steam-powered automobiles built by local entrepreneurs or often, family members were sometimes killed or injured, despite the low speeds characteristic of early vehicles. As time went on and automobile design and construction became ‘big business’, consumers increasingly demanded improved safety innovations from automobile manufacturers, and car companies have generally complied with countless safety features to lessen the likelihood and consequences of accidents. Here are arguably the ten most important vehicle safety innovations introduced in the last 50 years.

Seat Belts 

Seat belts and shoulder restraints have been the number one safety feature for many years. Approximately 40% of all motor vehicle accident fatalities occur when the driver and/or the passengers were not wearing their seat belt. The Volvo car company claims that the 3-point seat belt has saved more than one million lives since its inception.

Air Bags

Airbags are an important and life-saving safety innovation, however, they do not take the place of seat belts. Air bags are only effective when used in conjunction with the proper use of a seatbelt that keeps you in place. 

Anti-Lock Brakes

As recently as the 1980's it was common to describe an automobile accident as "the driver locked them up", meaning the loss of control that a driver experienced when the brakes locked and put the car in an uncontrollable skid. Locking the brakes and skidding did little to slow down the vehicle and sometimes caused a more serious accident than the one the driver was trying to avoid. Anti-lock brakes now slow the car more quickly but also gradually, without the loss of control or a skid.

Head Restraints

When adjusted properly, head restraints, sometimes referred to as headrests can help prevent whiplash and other serious neck injuries when a car is stopped at a traffic signal and struck (rear-ended) from behind.

Rear-Facing Child Safety Seats

In a study conducted by the Journal of Injury Prevention, it was found that children 2 or younger were 75% less likely to die or be severely injured when riding in a rear-facing child safety seat. Children need to be tightly and securely fastened in the seat's harness for a Child Safety Seat to work properly and to be effective.

Rollover Protection Systems

With the increase in the number of SUV's on the road came an increase in severe injuries and deaths due to rollover accidents. At regular or high speeds, an SUV has the tendency to flip over many times landing violently on its side or roof and potentially crushing any vehicle occupants. Rollover systems, like roll cages in race cars, were designed to support the integrity of the roof and the roof supports when an  SUV flips and rolls over.

Shatter-Proof Windshields

Believe it or not, when automobiles were first invented, the windshield glass was the same type as that used on a house today. A simple pebble hitting the windshield could cause the glass to break and seriously (and sometimes, lethally) lacerate the face, neck, and body of the driver and passengers. Windshield glass graduated to break-resistant glass which shattered into little pieces but unfortunately continued to cause lacerations. Eventually, auto manufacturer saw the need for shatter-proof glass which cracks but stays in place and does not crumble into pieces and thus cause serious injury in the event of a car accident.

Adjustable High Beam Head Lamps

Visibility has always been a safety concern when driving and regular head lights did little to illuminate the road more than a short distance in front of the automobile. High beam head lights were invented and enabled the driver to see many times further down the road at night. Improved visibility naturally gave a driver more time to avoid potential hazards like animals crossing the road or a sharp, unexpected turn ahead.

The Car's Horn

When considering safety innovations, it is easy to overlook some of the most obvious and simple inventions like the car's horn. Countless accidents have been prevented by one driver warning another, or alternatively, alerting a pedestrian or animal crossing the road, by blowing the car's horn. In terms of accidents avoided and lives saved, the car's horn may be the greatest of all safety innovations.

Inflatable Tires, Shock Absorbers, and Power Steering

In the old days, a car's tires were made from solid rubber and cars bounced uncontrollably on rough roads. By today's tire and suspension standards, solid rubber tires were a very bad idea indeed. Drivers, especially physically weaker individuals, struggled mightily to turn the car by steering. All three inventions made the automobile easier to maneuver and thus much safer.

These and other innovations have reduced the likelihood of injury in the event of an automobile accident and accordingly, Transport Canada accident statistics reflect a decline in accidents per capita over the past decade. However, the increasing number of vehicles and commuters on Ontario roads has meant that there continues to be a high incidence of collisions, most of which result from careless or negligent actions on behalf of a driver.

If you were injured in an automobile accident and are seeking compensation for your losses, call an experienced Injury Lawyers of Ontario attorney in your community. Our Mississauga Personal Injury Lawyers are one of many local firms with strong connections to medical and law enforcement professionals in the community and can thus best serve our clients in every aspect of their recovery and the injury claims process.

Sources:

https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/motorvehiclesafety/safevehicles-safetyfeatures-index-454.htm

http://www.volvocars.com/intl/about/our-company/heritage/innovations

http://www.autotrader.com/car-tech/5-top-car-safety-innovations-212820