Adhesive impact shield for better protection of pedestrians

Google wants to better protect pedestrians in case they collide with a car. The US company has a applied for a new patent concerning an adhesive impact shield.

An adhesive impact shield shall protect pedestrians in case of a collision with a car. (Picture: Google)

If a car hits a pedestrian, this may not only lead to lesions from the first impact. In many cases the pedestrian is thrown back on the street and sustains serious injuries.

Google has now invented an adhesive vehicle front. If it comes to a collision with a pedestrian, he should stick on the adhesive surface – similar to flypaper or double-sided adhesive tape.

However, the adhesive layer needs a protective film, as rain and dirt could also stick to it and reduce the adhesive power. According to plans from Google the protection film shall be made of some kind of texture similar to an eggshell. If it comes to an impact, the protective layer breaks immediately to uncover the adhesive surface. At the same time, the surface shouldn’t be too sticky as the pedestrian also has to get detached from the adhesive film.

Critics of the Google patent see one major disadvantage. If the car hits the pedestrian first and the crashes into another obstacle, the situation would become even more dangerous for the stuck-on person.

Other car manufacturers count on airbags on the windscreen or so-called active bonnets. If the car collides with a pedestrian the bonnet lifts a little bit and enlarges the available deformation space.

Via: golem.de

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