Volvo’s
Volvo moves the car industry further towards increasing the standards of automotive safety with another new award. Volvo Cars Corporation’s two -step booster seat wins the “Best of What’s New” Award from Popular Science magazine.
Booster seats are an innovation that makes riding in a car and wearing a seatbelt safer for young children aged 4 – 11 years old. Booster seats are meant to elevate a child’s seating position while riding inside the car. When it was found out that normal car seatbelts were fitted for full sized adults, children ran the risk of injuries when strapped to the adult – fitted seatbelts. The lap belt rides too high up the child’s abdomen and the shoulder belt is uncomfortable because it cuts across the throat. Since the seatbelt is ill – fitted for a child’s smaller frame, there was a risk of internal injuries for the child. The booster seat solves the problem. By elevating the child’s seating position, the lap belt rests firmly on the child’s thighs and the shoulder belt is safely on the child’s shoulder.
Booster seats are commonplace in most North American cars. But Volvo’s new two –step booster seat, takes “booster seat technology” (if there were such a thing), a step further. The two step booster seat not only boasts of being able to safeguard a child by elevating seating position, it also has inflatable side curtains which absorb energy and cushion impact in the event of a collision. The “Best of What’s New” award is the second award that the Volvo two – step booster seat has received. It has also merited an award for its innovative booster seat in the World Traffic Safety Symposium last April (2007).
Booster seats have been proven to protect children from vehicular injuries and many parents advocate having one in their cars. But the question that remains is how to convince a child to ride these safety seats. Most children, it seems, would refuse to ride a booster seat because they feel that they are already too big for “kiddie” seats. Taking this into account, there is a need for the creation of booster seats that will be more appealing to bigger children. Volvo has looked further into child safety and child psychology with its two – step booster seat. Thomas Broberg, Senior Safety Advisor of the Volvo Car Corporation is quoted saying: “We took into account the child’s physical size and weight, seat belt misuse, child physiology, along with redesigning our vehicle side body structure and side impact inflatable curtain to come up with this new, integrated two-step booster seat. There will be better fitment of our three-point seat belt, a wider age and weight range, and better attitude for the child who can now easily see outside with the added benefit of reducing driver distraction.”
Sources: Volvo Cars booster seat wins Popular Science “Best of What’s New” award , Booster Seats: Fight the Good Fight , Volvo Improves Safety For Children , World Traffic Safety Symposium Awards Volvo Cars For Innovative Child Booster Cushion System
