Research on head-neck injuries of pilots during emergency ejection from the aircraft

Abstract

Abstract This paper established a multi-body dynamics model of head-neck using LifeMod. To explore the damage of pilots’ head-neck during the ejection process, we used the established model to do simulation combined with the seat and helmet multi-body model. The head-neck model was validated through the volunteer frontal-collision and rear-collision tests, whose head acceleration, displacement curve and response time are in good agreement with the experimental data. The simulation showed that the head-neck is the most vulnerable to injury, when the head lean forward to the limit position and collide with headrest due to airflow. The results of various simulation calculations implied the head-neck protective device should be installed to avoid pilots’ neck damage in the ejection.