Volvo celebrates platinum years of seatbelt safety

MANILA: Volvo is celebrating 70 years of saving lives with seatbelts.

The Swedish carmaker was one of the first automobile manufacturers to introduce seatbelts to the European market with the 1956 Amazon prototype.

It had a two-point cross-chest diagonal belt, which Volvo noted was made available as an option on production models shortly afterwards.

Three years later, Volvo became the first marque to fit three-point belts as standard. The Gothenburg-headquartered company set the template for the modern safety belt that’s fitted to all cars today. 

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3-point safety belt

The three-point safety belt was created by Volvo Design Engineer Nils Bohlin, which consisted of a lap belt and a diagonal belt anchored at a low attachment point beside the seat. 

By 1959, the three-point safety belt was installed as standard in all Swedish market Volvo cars, and later in cars across the world as the patent was made available to all car makers free of charge.

This resulted in widespread availability and spurred the fitment of seatbelts as a legal requirement, helping to save millions of lives across the world. 

“The engineering innovation from Volvo seatbelts 70 years ago still plays a vital role in the design and engineering of modern Volvo models, with the newly launched EX60 mid-size SUV featuring the world’s first multi-adaptive safety belt,” Volvo wrote in a press release.

Multi-adaptive seatbelt

The world-first multi-adaptive seatbelt made its debut in the newest iteration of the Volvo EX60 mid-size sport utility vehicle.

This state-of-the-art safety belt uses real-time data input from advanced interior and exterior sensors to customize protection, adapting to the situation and individual occupant, taking into account their height, weight, seating position, and crash type.

A larger passenger in a serious crash, for example, will receive a higher belt load setting to help reduce the risk of head injury. Meanwhile, someone of smaller build in a milder crash will receive a lower belt load setting to reduce the risk of rib fractures.

As Volvo gathers more insights, the car can improve its understanding of the occupants, new scenarios, and response strategies; and thanks to over-the-air software updates, this can be applied to the car, so the technology will continuously improve over time.

“Volvo has always been at the forefront of safety evolution and innovation, and we’re pleased that we can continue to make new developments on such vital features like the seatbelt. The latest multi-adaptive seatbelt in the new EX60 is a testament to our pioneering technology and approach to safety that is continued today,” Volvo Cars United Kingdom Managing Director Nicole Melillo Shaw was quoted as saying. 

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