Volvo’s pedestrian airbag to reduce head injuries

Deploying at lightening fast speed, Volvo’s new Pedestrian Airbag Technology is the Swedish manufacturer’s latest move in its bid to eliminate pedestrian deaths by 2020.

The new airbag, which is housed under the bonnet, is aimed at reducing head injuries.

A world first in motoring technology, the safety system will be available in the all new V40.

The system, which deploys in a few hundredths of a second, works using a set of seven sensors at the front of the car.

When the car comes into contact with an object, the pedestrian airbag is activated if the control unit interprets the object as a human leg.

The airbag then fills with gas and in doing so, raises the bonnet by 10 cm and holds it in this position.

Meanwhile, this gap between the bonnet and the engine compartment allows the bonnet to deform, creating a dampening effect when it is hit by a pedestrian.

When inflated, the airbag covers the entire windscreen wiper recess, about one-third of the windscreen and the lower part of the windscreen pillars.

These areas are responsible for the most serious head injuries among pedestrians involved in a car crash.

With research showing that 75 per cent of all pedestrian accidents happening at up to 40 kph, the Volvo system works at speeds between 20 and 50 kph.