The inventor of the seat belt has just made it better. Volvo’s adaptive seat belt promises to be one of the greatest innovations in belt tech since it invented the modern three-point belt in 1959. It’s a belt that adapts to the person sitting in each seat. as well as road conditions and crash severity.
Seat Belts Were Simple, Crashes Aren’t
A modern seatbelt is a simple design. A long strap is attached to the vehicle at two points on one side and at a buckle on the other. Pretensioners, which use a small explosion or electric motor to instantly tighten the belt in the first milliseconds of a crash, were first used in 1981 but are now found on nearly all new cars.
The latest belts can make small adjustments for different passengers and crashes. Load limiters allow for a few different responses (Volvo says it uses three) to help make sure the occupant doesn’t experience unsafe forces in a crash.
More Adjustments Mean More Safety
This new multi-adaptive safety belt lets Volvo make even more adjustments. For a larger occupant in a severe crash, for example, it can allow for a higher load by grabbing hard and fast. This helps reduce the risk of a head injury.
A small passenger in a mild impact will experience lower belt loading. The belt will allow more webbing to play out, stopping you more gradually. This helps reduce the risk of a broken rib.
The Volvo adaptive seat belt has 11 load-limit profiles and more adjustments than any previous belt. The system uses sensors inside and outside of the car. Using that data, it can adjust “in less than the blink of an eye” to choose the right setting for the crash and the passenger in the seat.
The world first multi-adaptive seat belt is another milestone for automotive safety and a great example of how we leverage real-time data with the ambition to help save millions of more lives. This marks a major upgrade to the modern three-point safety belt, a Volvo invention introduced in 1959, estimated to have saved over a million lives.
— Åsa Haglund, head of Volvo Cars Safety Centre
Volvo even promises its adaptive seat belt can get better over time. It will use data from safety testing and real-world crashes to improve the responses. Volvo will be able to update the belt system to “improve its understanding of the occupants, new scenarios and response strategies.”
The new Volvo adaptive seat belt will come to market on the Volvo EX60. The electric version of the Swedish brand’s compact crossover is set to go on sale in 2026. It will bring the new belt (and probably a load of other safety features) with it.
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