Automobile collision force problem

AI Thread Summary
Seat belts and airbags are crucial safety features in automobiles, significantly reducing the forces experienced by occupants during collisions. Cars are engineered with crumple zones that allow the front of the vehicle to deform, enabling the passenger compartment to decelerate gradually over about one meter. In contrast, unrestrained occupants continue moving forward until they collide with hard surfaces, resulting in a much shorter deceleration distance of approximately five centimeters. The discussion includes calculations for estimating the net forces on a restrained occupant versus an unrestrained one during a collision, emphasizing the importance of showing work to receive assistance. Understanding these dynamics is essential for grasping the physics behind automobile safety.
mowassel
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seat belts and airbags save lives by reducing the forces exerted on the driver and passengers in an automobile collision. cars are designed with a crumple zone in the front of the car. in the event of a impact, the passenger compartment decelerates over a distance of about 1 m as the front of the car crumples. an occupant restrained by seat belts and air bags decelerates witht the car. by contrast, an unrestrained occupant keeps moving forward with no loss of speed (Newton's first law) until hitting the dashboard or windshield. these are unyielding surfaces, and the unfortunate occupant the decelerates over a distance of only about 5.

a)a 60kg person is in a head on collision. the car's speed at impact is 15m/s. estimate the net force on the person if he or she is wearing a seat belt and if the air bag deploys.

b) estimate the net force that ultimately stops the person if her or she is not restrained by a seat belt or air bag.

c) how do these two forces compare to the person's weight?
 
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What attempts have you made to solve the problem so far? We won't do your homework for you, because that will be of absolutely no help to you. However, if you show us how far you got and where specifically you got stuck, we can help point you in the right direction.

Hint for part (a): how much work has to be done to bring the person to a stop? Over what distance is this work being done?
 
i tried solving it acouple of time but failed...please or explain how i should do it?
 
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