Developing a new headrest for child safety seats to protect against side impact crashes
Official title: Advanced Side Impact Head Protection Technology for Child Safety Seats
Funded at Minnesota Healthsolutions Corporation · NIH-11065054 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is working on a new kind of headrest for child car seats to help protect kids from head injuries during side crashes, making sure that children aged 0-11 are safer without changing how parents use the seats.
Quick facts
| Grant type | Sbir 1 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Minnesota Healthsolutions Corporation NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Saint Paul, United States) |
| Project start | June 20, 2025 |
| Project end | June 19, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $306,776 |
| NIH project number | 1R43HD117515-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11065054 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are children aged 0-11 years who use child safety seats during travel.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not use child safety seats or are older than 11 years may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research focuses on creating an innovative dynamic headrest for child safety seats aimed at reducing head injuries during side impact automobile crashes. The project addresses the fact that traditional safety seats are primarily designed for head-on collisions, leaving children vulnerable in side impacts, which are known to cause more severe injuries. By assembling a team of experts, the research will involve designing, building, and testing a prototype that enhances head containment without requiring changes in how caregivers use the seats. The goal is to improve safety for children aged 0-11 years in the event of a car crash.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could significantly lower the incidence of head injuries in children involved in side impact automobile collisions.
How similar studies have gone: While there have been efforts to improve child safety seats, this approach of a dynamic headrest specifically for side impacts is novel and has not been extensively tested.
Where this research is happening
-
Minnesota Healthsolutions Corporation
Saint Paul, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Seifert, Sara — Minnesota Healthsolutions Corporation
- Study coordinator: Seifert, Sara
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.