The company that invented the three-point seatbelt has unveiled its latest innovation, which can be updated remotely to better protect occupants based on their size, shape, and seating position.
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If you struggle to keep up with downloadable software updates for your phone or laptop, prepare to add the seatbelts in your car to that list.
Volvo has unveiled a new seatbelt that uses sensors to determine the shape, weight and seating position of an occupant, and adapt how the belt responds in a crash to better protect them.
And – in what may be a world-first – the software powering the new "multi-adaptive" belt can be updated 'over-the-air' to improve its performance years after the car rolled out of the factory.
It is enabled by the seatbelt's load limiter, the device used to control how much force is applied to the body as the belt tightens in a crash.
Whereas current Volvo seatbelts have three load-limiting "profiles", the new multi-adaptive belt has 11, increasing the number of possible tension settings – referred to as "profile variations" – available to better adapt to an occupant's size and weight.
"The capabilities of the new multi-adaptive safety belt are designed to continuously improve via over-the-air software updates," Volvo said in a media statement.
"As Volvo Cars gathers more data and insights, the car can improve its understanding of the occupants, new scenarios and response strategies."
In addition to the occupant's profile – attributes such as their height, weight, body shape and seating position – the new belt takes data from outside the car, including the speed and angle of the car at the time of impact.
Volvo says the car will analyse the situation "in less than the blink of an eye" and send the information to the belt's electronics, which will "select the most appropriate setting".
Larger occupants in a higher-speed crash would feel a stronger force from the belt to "help reduce the risk of head injury," while a smaller person in a milder crash would "receive a lower belt load setting to reduce the risk of rib fractures," Volvo said in a media release.
The new seatbelt has been tested at Volvo's crash lab in Sweden – opened 25 years ago – which "can recreate almost any traffic accident and perform tests that exceed regulatory requirements for real-world safety," the brand says.
Over-the-air software updates are increasingly common in new cars, but to date, most have been limited to features within the infotainment screen, rather than improving key systems such as seatbelts.
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Alex Misoyannis has been writing about cars since 2017, when he started his own website, Redline. He contributed for Drive in 2018, before joining CarAdvice in 2019, becoming a regular contributing journalist within the news team in 2020. Cars have played a central role throughout Alex’s life, from flicking through car magazines at a young age, to growing up around performance vehicles in a car-loving family. Highly Commended - Young Writer of the Year 2024 (Under 30) Rising Star Journalist, 2024 Winner Scoop of The Year - 2024 Winner
