Toyota Unveils Virtual Human Body for Simulated Crashes

Tokyo―TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) and Toyota Central R&D Laboratories Inc. have jointly developed a highly responsive computer model of the human body called THUMS (Total Human Model For Safety) for use in the recreation and analysis of injuries resulting from automobile accidents.

THUMS accurately recreates the mechanical characteristics of the human body, including the body's shape, bone strength and dermal tenacity. It features detailed anatomical components such as vertebrae, hand and foot joints, ligaments and tendons. With more than 80,000 finite elements, THUMS (based on the physique of a 175cm, 77kg, 30-40-year-old male) provides much quicker calculation than that possible using conventional crash dummies in real vehicles by focusing injury analysis on a specific body part, thus providing nearly instant results from computer-generated collision simulations.

Because traffic accidents can take a nearly infinite number of configurations, there are limits to how well crash dummies, commonly used in safety tests and other forms of research, can accurately predict the degree and type of injuries to various parts of the human body. The virtual world of THUMS makes possible a much truer recreation of the shape and strength of the entire body.
In computer simulated vehicle collisions, it can predict, calculate and analyze the body's behavior and the chance and degree of injuries, including fractures and damage to joints. It can also be used to evaluate injuries to pedestrians and other non-car-occupant casualties.

By using THUMS to determine the various mechanisms that cause injuries during automobile crashes, and ip conjunction with crash analysis and actual collision tests, TMC intends to devote itself even more to creating a higher level of collision safety in its vehicles.

TMC plans for THUMS to evolve, gradually acquiring the ability to analyze injured organs and muscles, in addition to its current function of interpreting damage to bone structure, skin, joints and ligaments. It is also considering making the new technology, which is scheduled to be displayed at the 2000 Automotive Engineering Exhibition slated to start on May 24 in Yokohama, available to research organizations through Toyota System Research and other entities.