Thanks to new technologies, the standard car safety measure for adults is now available for toddlers. With the development of the Maxi-Cosi Air Safety technology, car seat manufacturer Maxi-Cosi has launched the world’s first child car seat with built-in airbags.
The ground-breaking technology enhances the safety of children in forward-facing child car seats enormously. In the case of a collision, two airbags located in the shoulder pads of the harness inflate within 0.05 seconds. This reduces the forces on a child’s neck up to 55%, compared to other forward-facing car seats. The airbags automatically deflate just 1 second after the collision.
“Cars are designed to transport adults and while they have got safer, child safety is mostly dependent on car seat legislation and experts,” states Andrew Ratcliffe, Managing Director of Maxi-Cosi, www.maxi-cosi.co.uk. “Real innovations need to come from our industry and after many years of development and testing, a ground-breaking technology for the next generation of forward-facing car seats is the outcome. Our Maxi-Cosi Air Safety technology® will lower the impact of an accident to a child’s neck and head in a forward-facing child car seat, resulting in better safety for toddlers.”
The new car seat works with a CO2 cartridge and an airbag trigger system built into the back of the car seat. The system detects a collision in 0.015 seconds, inflating the two airbags in the shoulder pads air within the blink of an eye to cushion the head softly. Tests prove that the Maxi-Cosi Air Safety technology leads reduction up to 55% of the forces acting on the neck vertebrae and the head in the case of a frontal collision (compared to any other forward-facing child car seat of Maxi-Cosi).
The first child car seat that will include the airbag is the AxissFix Air. Next to the Maxi-Cosi Air Safety technology®, the car seat features a 360° swivel, which can be used for both rearward- and forward-facing travel and is suitable for children whose height is between 61 and 105 centimetres.