Tokyo, Japan – Honda has announced three new technologies: a new third-generation pedestrian test dummy, a driver’s-side i-SRS airbag and a multi-view camera system.

The pedestrian dummy, POLAR III, will be used in vehicle-to-pedestrian crash tests before the end of this year, with the aim of reducing pedestrian lower back and upper leg injuries common in crashes involving SUVs or minivans. The new dummy’s reproduction fidelity for these areas has been improved to allow researchers to evaluate bone fractures, in addition to the prior ability to evaluate injuries to knee ligaments and fractures to lower leg bones. Honda was the first manufacturer to develop a pedestrian crash test dummy in 1998.

The i-SRS airbag, which will be introduced on the Life minicar in Japan in November 2008, continuously stages the volume of the inflating gas, combining enhanced occupant protection with reduced occupant impact. The airbag, a Honda innovation, features a spiral-shaped seam structure and gas release control valve to control deployment and pressure. The new system accommodates a broad range of occupant positions and potential collision situations.

The multi-view camera, which will be first applied to the all-new Odyssey scheduled for sale in Japan next month, displays views from multiple wide-angle cameras on the vehicle’s navigation screen to reduce blind spots, aid with parking, and help with three-way intersections where there is limited visibility or on narrow roads. The system includes four wide-angle cameras located in the front and rear of the vehicle, and on the right and left door mirrors.