Today's automobiles incorporate many new safety features but the seat belt and airbag will remain the most beneficial in preventing deaths as a result of a car accident.
Airbags are designed to deploy in front-end or near front-end collisions. The United States requires deployment in a crash deceleration of as little as 14mph into a barrier.
The concept of the airbag is that it is a soft pillow to land on in the event of a crash. Since 1998 all new cars must have front airbags for the driver and passenger but many auto manufacturers have gone beyond this minimal requirement and include up to eight airbags placed strategically throughout the vehicle.
To understand the basics of how airbags work we must turn to simple physics and the laws of motion. Moving objects have momentum (the product of an object's mass and velocity). The object will continue to move in its original direction at a predetermined speed unless it meets up with an outside force. To stop an object in motion requires force acting over a period of time.
In the case of auto accident the car's momentum stops instantly when it comes into contact with another vehicle or object but the persons inside will continue moving until a force is imposed to cause it to stop.
The goal of the airbag is to help stop the passenger while doing as little damage to him or her as possible. This must happen within the fraction of a second. The airbag actually slows the person without abruptly stopping them. In this way there is less possibility of serious injuries.
Greg Baumgartner is a truck accident lawyer based in Houston, Texas and helps victims of Texas truck accidents seek civil justice.
