Car airbag that pops out to save pedestrians
The photo provided by Volvo on Wednesday shows an inflated pedestrian airbag at the new Volvo V40.
Swedish auto major Volvo has unveiled a new “pedestrian
airbag,” which pops up on the outside of the car to protect people who
get struck.
The new airbag -- which the automobile
company debuted at this year’s Geneva Motor Show -- is located right
under the hood of the car.
It pops out within a
second when the car crashes into a person while travelling at speeds
between 12 and 30 mph, the range in which many pedestrians are struck.
The designers of the airbag said that it cushions an area of the windshield that many car-crash victims slam into, the New York Post reported.
Seven
sensors located on the front of the car determine if it has come into
contact with a human leg before it deploys, according to Popular
Mechanics.
Once it inflates the airbag raises the hood about four inches, which helps soften the impact on the pedestrian.
The
car with the new airbag is currently being sold only in Australia, and
there are no plans yet to bring it to the United States.
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