12 Seat Belt 1 The other sections of this Chapter will explain in greater detail how to ensure your safety to the maximum extent. However, please note that even when a seat belt is used correctly and the airbag has been inflated, it is still not possible to completely rule out the risk of death in accidents involving violent vehicle collisions. Why should seat belt be used? When a vehicle is in a frontal collision, the seat belt can reduce the forward inertia of the driver and passengers and minimize impact injuries on the vehicle passengers. Physical Principles of Frontal Collisions Passengers who do not fasten their seat belts are not “combined” with the vehicle into one body.
Consequently, during a frontal collision, these vehicle occupants will continue to move forward at the pre-collision speed. The physical principle of collision introduced in this example applies to both frontal vehicle collisions and all other types of vehicle collision. When driving, the vehicle and passengers all have energy (kinetic energy). The intensity of this energy depends on the vehicle speed and the mass of the passengers on board. The greater the speed and the mass, the greater the energy released during a collision. Among these factors, the vehicle’s speed plays a decisive role.
For example, when the vehicle’s speed increases from 25 Km/h to 50 Km/h, the kinetic energy released will increase four times.