Investigation of Brain Trauma Biomechanics in Vehicle Traffic Accidents Using Human Body Computational Models

This chapter aimed to study the biomechanical response and injury mechanisms of brain in passenger car-to-pedestrian collision event. The kinematics of head impact to a passenger car was reconstructed using multibody dynamics (MBD) models. The brain injury biomechanics was investigated by using an FE model of human body head (HBM-head). The HBM-head model was developed in accordance with human head anatomy. The model consists of scalp, skull, dura mater, cerebrospinal fluid, pia mater, cerebrum, cerebellum, ventricle, brain stem, falx, tentorium, etc. The existing data from cadaveric head impact tests were used to validate the head FE model. The kinematic and kinetic responses of the head were determined by using MBD model. The brain injury-related physical parameters and the distribution of the intracranial pressure were calculated from simulations of head impact to the windscreen and A-pillar by using the HBM-head model. It is proved that the head FE model has good biofidelity and can be used to study head–brain trauma and injury mechanisms in vehicle collisions.