GM looks to make air bags safer with new device
By Todd Nissen
CHICAGO., Feb 11 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp.
said on Thursday it will be the first automaker to offer
technology that stops a frontal air bag from deploying if a
small child is in the seat.
The new air bags will be introduced on the Cadillac Seville
early next year. Over the next three years the No. 1 automaker
plans to have it on a majority of its vehicles, GM North
America President Ronald Zarrella said at the Chicago Auto
Show.
GM said its system uses weight-based sensors and pattern
recognition technology that can tell the difference between a
small adult female and a child in a safety seat. If it is a
child weighing up to 66 pounds, either in a safety seat or not,
the air bag will not inflate.
"Yes, this thing can actually recognize your rear-end,"
Zarrella said during a speech.
GM said its system is safer than those that offer
dual-stage or multi-stage inflation rates to lessen the
deployment force.
Ford Motor Co. last month said it plans to offer in
future models an advanced restraint system that uses sensors to
measure the severity of an impending frontal collision, whether
or not the air bag is needed and at what force it should be
deployed.
Although proven to save lives, front-seat airbags were
initially tested with adults in mind and can be fatal to
small-stature adults or children riding in the front seat.
Government statistics show there have been 125 deaths
associated with front-seat air bags.
Ford has stepped up its use of safety as one of its product
attributes, but Zarrella said that is not GM's aim.
"Our objective is not to get a competitive advantage," he
said.
Separately, GM caused a stir Thursday around the issue of
side air bags by saying it had tested air bags in competitors
models that could cause serious harm to improperly restrained
children.
During a speech, Zarrella showed three video tapes of
children test dummies being thrown violently forward by the
force of a deploying side air bag. GM said its side air bags
are more safe because they have special vents that lessen the
impact when a child is riding in the seat.
GM would not identify the competitors it had tested. Side
air bags, which can reduce injuries to the head, chest and
pelvis, are offered in GM, Ford and many import models. There
have been no reports of side air bags causing serious injuries.
Ford said its own tests show that its side airbags pose a
very low risk to children sitting out of position.
"We are highly confident that our system poses an extremely
low risk to anyone, including out-of-position people or
occupants, children included," said Ford spokesman Terry
Bresnihan.
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