Developing a custom Anthropomorphic Test Device for measuring blast effects on occupants inside armored vehicles

This work represents our first step at forming the concept of a measuring system of blast effects on humans inside armored vehicles.We present our initial attempts at developing a custom anthropometric test device (ATD) for measuring blast effects on human occupants in armored vehicles. It was designed to mimic the body of a 50th percentile human male in shape, weight and size. A drop tower was specifically built to simulate dynamic loads resulting from the explosion of improvised explosive devices under vehicle structures. The custom ATD was dropped from a 10 m height and the results were used to verify its design using published data. The ATD was then used to validate the effectiveness of the design of an armored vehicle that was equipped with passive blast protection devices. Useful information was derived from test results and design improvements were suggested. Future experiments are planned to improve the design of the next version of the custom ATD.