How does the personal safety system work, Front crash severity sensor, Seating and safety restraints – FORD 2009 Explorer v.1 User Manual

Page 189

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• Driver’s seat position sensor.
• Front passenger sensing system
• “Passenger airbag off” or “pass airbag off” indicator lamp
• Front crash severity sensor.
• Restraints Control Module (RCM).
• Restraint system warning light and back-up tone.
• The electrical wiring for the airbags, crash sensor(s), safety belt

pretensioners, front safety belt usage sensors, driver seat position
sensor, front passenger sensing system, and indicator lights.

How does the Personal Safety System

work?

The Personal Safety System

௡ can adapt the deployment strategy of your

vehicle’s safety devices according to crash severity and occupant
conditions. A collection of crash and occupant sensors provides
information to the Restraints Control Module (RCM). During a crash, the
RCM may activate the safety belt pretensioners and/or either one or both
stages of the dual-stage airbag supplemental restraints based on crash
severity and occupant conditions.

The fact that the pretensioners or airbags did not activate for both front
seat occupants in a collision does not mean that something is wrong with
the system. Rather, it means the Personal Safety System

௡ determined

the accident conditions (crash severity, belt usage, etc.) were not
appropriate to activate these safety devices. Front airbags are designed
to activate only in frontal and near-frontal collisions, not rollovers,
side-impacts, or rear-impacts unless the collision causes sufficient
longitudinal deceleration.

Driver and passenger dual-stage airbag supplemental restraints

The dual-stage airbags offer the capability to tailor the level of airbag
inflation energy. A lower, less forceful energy level is provided for more
common, moderate-severity impacts. A higher energy level is used for
the most severe impacts. Refer to Airbag supplemental restraints
(SRS)
section in this chapter.

Front crash severity sensor

The front crash severity sensor enhances the ability to detect the
severity of an impact. Positioned up front, it provides valuable
information early in the crash event on the severity of the impact. This
allows your Personal Safety System

௡ to distinguish between different

levels of crash severity and modify the deployment strategy of the
dual-stage airbags and safety belt pretensioners.

2009 Explorer (exp)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA
(fus)

Seating and Safety Restraints

189

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