Interpretation ID: aiam2919
P.E.
Engineer
Regulatory Affairs
Volvo of America Corporation
Rockleigh
NJ 07647;
Dear Mr. Friberg: This is in response to your letter of November 1, 1978, asking whethe the Volvo 'Child Cushion' must comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 213, *Child Seating Systems*. You state that the 'Child Cushion' is 'designed to be used by children in the approximate age range of 6 to 12 years' for the purpose of raising the child 'so that the seat belt system properly distributes deceleration forces over the child's torso in the event of impact, and to greatly reduce the probability of 'submarining'.'; Section 3 of Standard No. 213 currently defines a 'child seatin system' as 'an item of motor vehicle equipment for seating a child being transported in a motor vehicle.' In adopting that definition, the agency intended to cover all devices designed to seat children in motor vehicles, regardless whether a device provides restraint (38 FR 7562, 1973). Although you state that the Volvo 'Child Cushion' is 'in itself not a restraint system' it would be covered by Standard No. 213 if it is designed to seat a *child*.; As you point out, Standard No. 213 does not currently specify the siz or age range of children to which the standard is applicable, while proposed Standard No. 213-80, *Child Restraint Systems*, does specify a size range (43 FR 21470, 1978). Section 4 of the proposed new standard defines a 'child restraint system' as 'any device, except Type I or Type II seat belts, designed for use in a motor vehicle to restrain, seat, or position children who weigh not more than 50 pounds.'; Although current Standard No. 213 does not specify the size and ag range of the children intended to be protected, an upper limit of 50 pounds is indicated by a number of the standard's requirements. Section 5 of Standard No. 213 provides that the torso block to be used in conducting the static tests specified in the standard is the same torso block as used in Standard No. 209, *Seat Belt Assemblies*, to test Type 3 belt assemblies. Standard No. 209 defines a Type 3 assembly as 'a combination pelvic and upper torso restraint for persons weighing not more than 50 pounds or 23 kilograms and capable of sitting upright by themselves, that is children in the approximate age range of 8 months to 6 years.' In addition, the static load requirements of Section 4.11 of Standard No. 213 were designed to reflect the loads that would be imposed on a 40-50 pound child in a 30 mph crash (35 FR 5120, 35 FR 14778, 1970). Therefore, Standard No. 213, like proposed Standard No 213-80, is intended to apply only to child restraints for children weighing 50 pounds or under.; If the Volvo 'Child Cushion' is designed only for children larger tha those intended to be covered by Standard No. 213, the 'Child Cushion' would not be required to meet the performance requirements of the standard. However, the agency is interested in learning of any test data that Volvo has comparing the protection provided by use of the 'Child Cushion' and a three-point belt with the protection provided by use of only a three-point belt. A representative of the agency's rulemaking office will contact you concerning this request. Likewise, in order to ensure the safe use of the Volvo 'Child Cushion,' it is recommended that the device be clearly and permanently labelled to show that it is to be used with a three-point belt only by a specific size and age range of children.; Sincerely, Joseph J. Levin, Jr., Chief Counsel