ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION & RECONSTRUCTION ARTICLES MAIN PAGE

7/17/2018· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Event Data Recorders and Collision Investigation

By: Al Duncan

Event Data Recorders (EDRs) were first introduced by General Motors (GM) in 1974. That data was only available to GM; however, since 1994 more and more vehicle EDR’s have recorded data that can be gathered. The data captured can be imaged and is being used by vehicle manufacturers, law enforcement officers, and collision reconstructionists to better understand what is happening in a collision. In accident investigation, EDRs have the potential to provide independent measurements of crash data that would elsewise be estimated by reconstruction methodology.

5/25/2009· Human Factors

Application of Human Factors Engineering in Medical Product Design

By: Andrew Le Cocq

Advancements in medical instrumentation are often judged on technical factors such as increased accuracy or increased capabilities without regard to the operator, or to the degree of knowledge or training required to make the instrument perform all of the advanced functions for which it was designed. Because patient safety and efficient use of an instrument are ultimately determined by the operator, it is imperative that medical instruments be designed not only with capability and functionality in mind

2/14/2014· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Automated Retrieval System Failure Results in Catastrophic Fire at Storage Facility

By: Bill O'Donnell

The largest storage rack/ retrieval system, larger than two football fields and eighty feet wide was constructed to store 108 million pounds of paper products. On July, 2002, after two months of use, the facility collapsed and sparked a fire that destroyed the entire structure and 45 million pounds of paper. Nearly 50 fire departments responded to the inferno, which burned for three weeks. The owner of the facility sued a number of companies that included the contractor that designed and built the structure, a subcontractor, and the company that supplied the 110 foot steel columns.

10/23/2012· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Low Speed Automobile Collisions

By: Dr. Ernest Chiodo

Low speed motor vehicle collisions are a common occurrence. The use of cellular phones, text messaging, and e-mailing while driving has only increased the frequency of low speed motor vehicle collisions. A motor vehicle collision where there is only minor damage to the vehicles may result in personal injury claims for substantial sums.

8/29/2013· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

The Distribution of Pedestrian-Backing Vehicle Accidents by Backup Alarm Status and Vehicle Type

By: Dr. J.P. Purswell

The purpose of the current study was to update and expand upon an earlier study performed to review and categorize OSHA accident investigation records for pedestrian-backing vehicle accidents according to whether the backing vehicle had a backup alarm and whether the alarm was installed and functioning as intended. The current study includes an analysis of additional records as well as the business type (SIC code) of the employer.

7/31/2010· Fires & Explosions

Have We Sparked Our Last Home Fire?

By: Gene Haynes

Every year there are thousands of home fires all across the nation due to faulty household electrical wiring. There are an annual average of 110 electrical fires a day as a result of frayed wires, loose electrical connections, broken extension cords, faulty switches and outlets and other common sources.

8/7/2018· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Children Will Fall At Playgrounds. What Shall We Do To Protect Them? - Part I

By: Jeffery Warren and Aron Olson

In 2011, a 5-year old boy was severely injured at a public playground when he fell through a second floor opening around a fireman's pole in a playhouse. He fell more than seven feet and struck a bare concrete floor. We are thankful that he eventually recovered from his injuries. The person who designed and built the playground was accused of negligence. A lawsuit ensued, and eventually settled in favor of the boy.

10/24/2018· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Children Will Fall At Playgrounds. What Shall We Do To Protect Them? A Multipart Blog Series - Part III: An Overview of Selected Playground Safety Technologies

By: Jeffrey Warren and Aron Olson

Welcome to the third and final post in our multipart series of blog posts about a young boy's fall and serious injury at a public playground. In our first post we gave a brief overview of the incident and our investigation. In the second post we discussed some of the safety standards applicable to public playgrounds. In this post, we will examine some of the impact-absorbing playground surfaces available to protect children at playgrounds from injury. If you would like to read the first two posts, they are available here and here.

5/22/2006· Injury

Types of Knee Injuries & How They Occur

By: Kenneth Solomon, PhD, PE, et al

The purpose of this article is to distinguish the mechanism of knee injury (e.g., forward fall while foot is trapped, impact of knee on dashboard, chronic injury due to repetitive twisting, etc.) from the type of injury (e.g., torn meniscus, ruptured ACL, bursitis, etc

7/31/2009· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Forensic Engineering Experts: Electrical Fires

By: Kristopher J. Seluga, PE

Electric fires are becoming more common as appliances and electric feeds are used more and more in our daily lives. Like other fires, the root cause of an electric fire is the introduction of heat, oxygen, and fuel.