Main description:

Injury control, a new branch of engineering science, is developing rapidly, incorporating the fundamentals of biomechanics, engineering mechanics, and control design. This book covers optimal protection from impact, especially the prevention of injuries. The book's first part presents the fundamentals of impact, without specific reference to injury control. Building on the first part, the second part deals with particular injuries. Treating the human body as a multi-faceted engineering system, the coverage illustrates system designs to prevent injury under specific environmental conditions, whether in an automobile, aircraft, or military situation.

Contents:

PREFACE. BASIC TERMINOLOGY. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION. 1.1 The Structure of the Book. 1.2 Related Studies. References. CHAPTER 2 FUNDAMENTALS OF IMPACT AND SHOCK ISOLATION. 2.1 Shock Loading: Basic Models and Characteristics. 2.2 Shock Isolation. 2.3 The Isolator as a Control Medium: Active and Passive Isolators. 2.4 Does Isolation of an Object from the Base Always Lead to a Reduction in the Shock Load Transmitted to the Object?. References. CHAPTER 3 BASIC OPTIMAL SHOCK ISOLATION: SINGLE DEGREE OF FREEDOM SYSTEMS. 3.1 Basic Problems. 3.2 Limiting Performance Analysis: Basic Concept and Analytical Results. 3.3 Limiting Performance Analysis: Computational Approach. 3.4 Parametric Optimization. 3.5 Pre-Acting Control for Shock Isolators. 3.6 Best and Worst Disturbance Analyses. References. CHAPTER 4 OPTIMAL SHOCK ISOLATION FOR MULTI-DEGREE-OF-FREEDOM SYSTEMS. 4.1 Optimal Shock Isolation for a Two-Component Viscoelastic Object. 4.2 Optimal Shock Isolation for Three-Component Structures. References. CHAPTER 5 SPINAL INJURY CONTROL. 5.1 Description of the Model. 5.2 Minimization of the Occupant's Displacement subject to a Constraint Imposed on the Spinal Compressive Force. 5.3 Spinal Injury Control System with two Shock Isolators. 5.4 MADYMO Simulation for the Limiting Performance Analysis. References. CHAPTER 6 THORACIC INJURY CONTROL. 6.1 Smart Restraint Systems. 6.2 Basic Concept of Restraint Force Control. 6.3 Limiting Performance Analysis for the Prevention of Thoracic Injuries in a Frontal Car Crash. 6.4 Feedback Control of the Elastic Restraint Force on the Basis of the Two-Mass Thorax Injury Model. 6.5 Conclusions. References. CHAPTER 7 HEAD INJURY CONTROL. 7.1 Head Injury Criterion: Historical Perspectives. 7.2 Minimization of the Deceleration Distance for Constrained HIC. 7.3 Minimization of the HIC for Constrained Deceleration Distance. 7.4 Alternative Control Laws. References. CHAPTER 8 INJURY CONTROL FOR WHEELCHAIR OCCUPANTS. 8.1 Introduction. 8.2 Optimal Shock Isolation of Single-Degree-of-Freedom System. 8.3 Simulation Using MADYMO. 8.4 Discussion. References. Index.