65FR36106 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Head Impact Protection
robop...@us.govnews.org
Posting-number: Volume 65, Issue 110, Page 36106
[Federal Register: June 7, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 110)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 36106-36107]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr07jn00-20]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 571
[Docket No. 00-7145]
[RIN No. 2127-AH61]
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Head Impact Protection
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.
ACTION: Extension of comment period.
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SUMMARY: This document grants a request to extend the comment period on
an agency proposal to amend the upper interior impact requirements of
its standard on occupant protection in interior impact by modifying the
minimum distance between certain target points on vertical surfaces
inside a vehicle and by adding target points for pillar-like structures
that do not meet the definition of ``pillar,'' i.e., certain door
frames and vertical seat belt mounting structures.
DATES: Extended comment closing date: Comments on the April 5, 2000
proposal, 65 FR 17842, Docket No. 00-7145, must be received by the
agency on or before close of business on July 5, 2000.
ADDRESSES: You should mention the docket number of this document in
your comments and submit your comments in writing to: Docket
Management, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, SW, Washington, DC 20590.
Alternatively, you may submit your comments electronically by e-mail at
http://dms.dot.gov.
You may call the Docket at 202-366-9324, and visit it from 10:00
a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For non-legal issues, you may call Dr.
William Fan, Office of Crashworthiness Standards, at (202) 366-4922,
facsimile (202) 366-4329, electronic mail ``bf...@nhtsa.dot.gov''. For
legal issues, you may call Otto Matheke, Office of the Chief Counsel,
at 202-366-5263.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 5, 2000, NHTSA published a notice
of proposed rulemaking proposing to amend the upper interior impact
requirements of Standard No. 201, Occupant Protection in Interior
Impact, in several respects. One proposal addressed the minimum
distance between certain target points on vertical surfaces inside a
vehicle. Compliance with the upper interior impact requirements is
determined, in part, by measuring the forces experienced by a test
device known as the Free Motion Headform (FMH) when it impacts certain
target points in the vehicle interior. To ensure that the damage caused
by the testing of one target point does not overlap the testing of
nearby target points, the standard specifies that tested targets be at
least a certain distance apart; currently 150 mm (6 inches). We
proposed expanding this minimum distance to 200 mm (8 inches) for tests
performed on certain vertical surfaces in order to alleviate concerns
that the current distance is not large enough to prevent the FMH impact
area for one target point from overlapping the FMH impact areas for
nearby target points in the same vehicle. We also proposed adding
target points for pillar-like structures that do not meet the
definition of ``pillar,'' i.e., certain door frames and vertical seat
belt mounting structures and are therefore not currently subject to
Standard No. 201. We tentatively concluded that these structures are
the equivalent of ``pillars'' now covered by the Standard.
The NPRM specified a comment closing date of June 5, 2000 (60 days
after date of publication). However, on May 16, 2000, we received a
request for an extension of the comment closing date from Advocates for
Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates). Advocates stated that it wished to
provide comments on our proposal, but was unable to do so in a timely
fashion due
[[Page 36107]]
to the organization's limited resources and a competing need to comment
on a number of other pending regulatory proposals affecting highway and
highway safety. Therefore, Advocates requested an additional 60 days
for submission of its comments.
Particularly because Advocates is a prominent public interest
organization dedicated to the consideration of issues related to
highway and vehicle safety, the agency is interested in its comments.
Thus, in order to provide the Advocates and other interested parties
ample time and opportunity to express their views on the proposed
amendments to Standard No. 201, NHTSA believes that there is good cause
for the extension of the comment period. However, the agency does not
believe that an extension of 60 days is warranted or would be in the
public interest. NHTSA has determined that it is appropriate to extend
the comment period for 30 days and that such extension is consistent
with the public interest. Accordingly, the Advocates request to extend
the comment period for an additional 60 days is denied, but the comment
period is extended for a period of 30 days to July 5, 2000.
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 322, 30111, 30115, 30117, and 30166;
delegation of authority is at 49 CR 1.50.
Issued on June 2, 2000.
Stephen R. Kratzke,
Associate Administrator for Safety Performance Standards.
[FR Doc. 00-14277 Filed 6-2-00; 12:34 pm]
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