Special Conditions: The Boeing Company Model 777 Series Airplanes; Passenger Seats With Pretensioner Restraint Systems, 73219-73221 [2023-23519]
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 205 / Wednesday, October 25, 2023 / Rules and Regulations
73219
TABLE 13—TEST OPERATING CONDITIONS FOR VARIABLE- OR MULTIPLE-CAPACITY LOW-TEMPERATURE OUTDOOR
DEDICATED CONDENSING UNITS—Continued
Condenser
air entering
dry-bulb,
°F
Test title
Suction
dew point,
°F
Return gas,
°F
Off-Cycle, Condition C ......................
........................
........................
Condenser
air entering
wet-bulb,
°F 1
35
Compressor operating mode
34
Compressor Off.
Notes:
1 Required only for evaporative condensing units (e.g., incorporates a slinger ring).
TABLE 14—TEST OPERATING CONDITIONS FOR VARIABLE- OR MULTIPLE-CAPACITY LOW-TEMPERATURE INDOOR
DEDICATED CONDENSING UNITS
Suction
dew point,
°F
Test title
Capacity, Condition A, Minimum Capacity.
Capacity, Condition A, Intermediate
Capacity.
Capacity, Condition A, Maximum Capacity.
Off-Cycle, Condition A ......................
Condenser
air entering
dry-bulb,
°F
Return gas,
°F
Condenser
air entering
wet-bulb,
°F 1
Compressor operating mode
¥22
5
90
75
Minimum Capacity, k=1.
¥22
5
90
75
Intermediate Capacity, k=i.
¥22
5
90
75
Maximum Capacity, k=2.
........................
........................
90
75
Compressor Off.
Notes:
1 Required only for evaporative condensing units (e.g., incorporates a slinger ring).
*
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2023–18531 Filed 10–24–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 25
[Docket No. FAA–2022–1740; Special
Conditions No. 25–841–SC]
Special Conditions: The Boeing
Company Model 777 Series Airplanes;
Passenger Seats With Pretensioner
Restraint Systems
Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Final special conditions.
AGENCY:
These special conditions are
issued for The Boeing Company
(Boeing) Model 777 series airplanes.
These airplanes have a novel or unusual
design feature when compared to the
state of technology envisioned in the
airworthiness standards for transport
category airplanes. This design feature
is pretensioner restraint systems
installed on passenger seats. The
applicable airworthiness regulations do
not contain adequate or appropriate
safety standards for this design feature.
These special conditions contain the
additional safety standards that the
Administrator considers necessary to
establish a level of safety equivalent to
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:56 Oct 24, 2023
Jkt 262001
that established by the existing
airworthiness standards.
DATES: Effective November 24, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Shannon Lennon, Cabin Safety, AIR–
624, Technical Policy Branch, Policy
and Standards Division, Aircraft
Certification Service, Federal Aviation
Administration, 2200 South 216th
Street, Des Moines, Washington 98198;
telephone and fax 206–231–3209; email
shannon.lennon@faa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On September 30, 2021, Boeing
applied for an amendment to Type
Certificate No. T00001SE for Boeing
Model 777 series airplanes. These
airplanes, currently approved under
Type Certificate No. T00001SE, are
twin-engine, transport-category
airplanes with maximum seating for 495
passengers and a maximum takeoff
weight of 775,000 pounds.
Type Certification Basis
Under the provisions of 14 CFR
21.101, Boeing must show that Model
777 series airplanes meet the applicable
provisions of the regulations listed in
Type Certificate No. T00001SE, or the
applicable regulations in effect on the
date of application for the change,
except for earlier amendments as agreed
upon by the FAA.
If the Administrator finds that the
applicable airworthiness regulations
(e.g., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
adequate or appropriate safety standards
for Boeing Model 777 series airplanes
because of a novel or unusual design
feature, special conditions are
prescribed under the provisions of
§ 21.16.
Special conditions are initially
applicable to the model for which they
are issued. Should the type certificate
for that model be amended later to
include any other model that
incorporates the same novel or unusual
design feature, or should any other
model already included on the same
type certificate be modified to
incorporate the same novel or unusual
design feature, these special conditions
would also apply to the other model
under § 21.101.
In addition to the applicable
airworthiness regulations and special
conditions, Boeing Model 777 series
airplanes must comply with the fuelvent and exhaust-emission requirements
of 14 CFR part 34, and the noisecertification requirements of 14 CFR
part 36.
The FAA issues special conditions, as
defined in 14 CFR 11.19, in accordance
with § 11.38, and they become part of
the type certification basis under
§ 21.101.
Novel or Unusual Design Features
Boeing Model 777 series airplanes
will incorporate the following novel or
unusual design feature:
Forward-facing seats incorporating a
shoulder harness with pretensioner
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25OCR1
73220
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 205 / Wednesday, October 25, 2023 / Rules and Regulations
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1
device, otherwise known as a
pretensioner restraint system, which is
intended to protect the occupants from
head injuries.
Discussion
Boeing will install, in Model 777
series airplanes, forward-facing seats
that incorporate a shoulder harness with
a pretensioner system, for head-injury
protection, at each seat place.
Shoulder harnesses have been widely
used on flight-attendant seats, flightdeck seats, in business jets, and in
general-aviation airplanes to reduce
occupant head injury in the event of an
emergency landing. Special conditions,
pertinent regulations, and published
guidance relate to other restraint
systems. However, the use of
pretensioners in the restraint system on
transport-airplane seats is a novel
design.
The pretensioner restraint system
utilizes a retractor that eliminates slack
in the shoulder harness and pulls the
occupant back into the seat prior to
impact. This has the effect of reducing
forward translation of the occupant,
reducing head arc, and reducing loads
in the shoulder harness.
Pretensioner technology involves a
step-change in loading experienced by
the occupant for impacts below and
above that at which the device deploys,
because activation of the shoulder
harness, at the point at which the
pretensioner engages, interrupts uppertorso excursion. Such excursion could
result in the head-injury criteria (HIC)
being higher at an intermediate impact
condition than that resulting from the
maximum impact condition
corresponding to the test conditions
specified in § 25.562. See condition 1 in
these special conditions.
The ideal triangular maximumseverity pulse is defined in Advisory
Circular (AC) 25.562–1B, ‘‘Dynamic
Evaluation of Seat Restraint Systems
and Occupant Protection on Transport
Airplanes.’’ For the evaluation and
testing of less-severe pulses for purposes
of assessing the effectiveness of the
pretensioner setting, a similar triangular
pulse should be used with acceleration,
rise time, and velocity change scaled
accordingly. The magnitude of the
required pulse should not deviate below
the ideal pulse by more than 0.5g until
1.33 t1 is reached, where t1 represents
the time interval between 0 and t1 on
the referenced pulse shape, as shown in
AC 25.562–1B. This is an acceptable
method of compliance to the test
requirements of the special conditions.
Additionally, the pretensioner might
not provide protection, after actuation,
during secondary impacts. Therefore,
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18:18 Oct 24, 2023
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the case where a small impact is
followed by a large impact should be
addressed. If the minimum deceleration
severity at which the pretensioner is set
to deploy is unnecessarily low, the
protection offered by the pretensioner
may be lost by the time a second, larger
impact occurs.
Conditions 1 through 4 ensure that
the pretensioner system activates when
intended, to provide the necessary
protection of occupants. This includes
protection of a range of occupants under
various accident conditions. Conditions
5 through 10 address maintenance and
reliability of the pretensioner system,
including any outside influences on the
mechanism, to ensure it functions as
intended.
The special conditions contain the
additional safety standards that the
Administrator considers necessary to
establish a level of safety equivalent to
that established by the existing
airworthiness standards.
Discussion of Comments
The FAA issued Notice of Proposed
Special Conditions No. 25–23–01–SC
for Boeing Model 777 airplanes, which
was published in the Federal Register
on May 11, 2023 (88 FR 30262).
The FAA received one response, from
the Air Line Pilots Association,
International, in support of the special
conditions. The special conditions are
adopted as proposed.
Applicability
As discussed above, these special
conditions are applicable to Boeing
Model 777 series airplanes. Should
Boeing apply at a later date for a change
to the type certificate to include another
model incorporating the same novel or
unusual design feature, these special
conditions would apply to that model as
well.
Conclusion
This action affects only a certain
novel or unusual design feature on one
model series of airplanes. It is not a rule
of general applicability.
List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25
Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting
and recordkeeping requirements.
Authority Citation
The authority citation for these
special conditions is as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g), 40113,
44701, 44702, 44704.
The Special Conditions
Accordingly, pursuant to the authority
delegated to me by the Administrator,
the following special conditions are
■
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Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
issued as part of the type certification
basis for Boeing Model 777 series
airplanes.
In addition to the requirements of
§ 25.562, forward-facing passenger seats
with pretensioner restraint systems
must meet the following:
(1) Head Injury Criteria (HIC)
The HIC value must not exceed 1000
at any condition at which the
pretensioner does or does not deploy,
up to the maximum severity pulse that
corresponds to the test conditions
specified in § 25.562. Tests must be
performed to demonstrate this, taking
into account any necessary tolerances
for deployment.
When an airbag device is present in
addition to the pretensioner restraint
system, and the anthropomorphic test
device (ATD) has no apparent contact
with the seat/structure but has contact
with an airbag, a HIC unlimited score in
excess of 1000 is acceptable, provided
the HIC15 score (calculated in
accordance with 49 CFR 571.208) for
that contact is less than 700.
ATD head contact with the seat or
other structure, through the airbag, or
contact subsequent to contact with the
airbag, requires a HIC value that does
not exceed 1000.
(2) Protection During Secondary
Impacts
The pretensioner activation setting
must be demonstrated to maximize the
probability of the protection being
available when needed, considering
secondary impacts.
(3) Protection of Occupants Other Than
50th Percentile
Protection of occupants for a range of
stature from a 2-year-old child to a 95th
percentile male must be shown. For
shoulder harnesses that include
pretensioners, protection of occupants
other than a 50th percentile male may
be shown by test or analysis. In
addition, the pretensioner must not
introduce a hazard to passengers due to
the following seating configurations:
(a) The seat occupant is holding an
infant.
(b) The seat occupant is a child in a
child-restraint device.
(c) The seat occupant is a pregnant
woman.
(4) Occupants Adopting the Brace
Position
Occupants in the traditional brace
position when the pretensioner activates
must not experience adverse effects
from the pretensioner activation.
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 205 / Wednesday, October 25, 2023 / Rules and Regulations
(5) Inadvertent Pretensioner Actuation
(a) The probability of inadvertent
pretensioner actuation must be shown
to be extremely remote (i.e., average
probability per flight hour of less than
10¥7.
(b) The system must be shown not to
be susceptible to inadvertent
pretensioner actuation as a result of
wear and tear, nor inertia loads resulting
from in-flight or ground maneuvers
likely to be experienced in service.
(c) The seated occupant must not be
seriously injured as a result of
inadvertent pretensioner actuation.
(d) Inadvertent pretensioner actuation
must not cause a hazard to the airplane,
nor cause serious injury to anyone who
may be positioned close to the retractor
or belt (e.g., seated in an adjacent seat
or standing adjacent to the seat).
(6) Availability of the Pretensioner
Function Prior to Flight
The design must provide means for a
crewmember to verify the availability of
the pretensioner function prior to each
flight, or the probability of failure of the
pretensioner function must be
demonstrated to be extremely remote
(i.e., average probability per flight hour
of less than 10¥7) between inspection
intervals.
(7) Incorrect Seat Belt Orientation
The system design must ensure that
any incorrect orientation (twisting) of
the seat belt does not compromise the
pretensioner protection function.
(8) Contamination Protection
The pretensioner mechanisms and
controls must be protected from external
contamination associated with that
which could occur on or around
passenger seating.
(9) Prevention of Hazards
The pretensioner system must not
induce a hazard to passengers in case of
fire, nor create a fire hazard, if activated.
(10) Functionality After Loss of Power
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1
The system must function properly
after loss of normal airplane electrical
power and after a transverse separation
in the fuselage at the most critical
location. A separation at the location of
the system does not have to be
considered.
Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on
October 19, 2023.
Patrick R. Mullen,
Manager, Technical Policy Branch, Policy and
Standards Division, Aircraft Certification
Service.
CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY
COMMISSION
16 CFR Part 1610
[Docket No. CPSC–2019–0008]
Standard for the Flammability of
Clothing Textiles
Consumer Product Safety
Commission.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Consumer Product
Safety Commission (Commission or
CPSC) is amending the Standard for the
Flammability of Clothing Textiles. The
revisions clarify existing provisions,
expand permissible equipment and
materials for testing, and update
equipment requirements that are
outdated. The Commission issues this
amendment under the authority of the
Flammable Fabrics Act.
DATES: This rule is effective on April 22,
2024. The incorporation by reference of
the publication listed in this rule is
approved by the Director of the Federal
Register as of April 22, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Will
Cusey, Small Business Ombudsman,
U.S. Consumer Product Safety
Commission, 4330 East-West Highway,
Bethesda, MD 20814; telephone (301)
504–7945 or (888) 531–9070; email:
sbo@cpsc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:
I. Background
On September 14, 2022, the
Commission published a notice of
proposed rulemaking (NPR), proposing
to amend the Standard for the
Flammability of Clothing Textiles at 16
CFR part 1610 (Standard). 87 FR 56289.
The Standard was codified under the
Flammable Fabrics Act (FFA; 15 U.S.C.
1191–1204). The purpose of the FFA is
to prohibit the importation, manufacture
for sale, or sale in commerce of any
fabric or article of wearing apparel that
is ‘‘so highly flammable as to be
dangerous when worn by individuals.’’
Public Law 83–88, 67 Stat. 111 (June 30,
1953). The Standard accomplishes this
by providing a national standard for
testing and rating the flammability of
textiles and textile products used for
clothing. The Standard specifies test
equipment, materials, and procedures
for testing the flammability of clothing
textiles and prohibits the use of highly
flammable textiles in clothing.
The amendments proposed in the
NPR and adopted in this final rule 1 aim
to clarify existing provisions in the
[FR Doc. 2023–23519 Filed 10–24–23; 8:45 am]
1 The
BILLING CODE 4910–13–P
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15:56 Oct 24, 2023
Jkt 262001
PO 00000
Commission voted 4–0 to approve this rule.
Frm 00007
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
73221
Standard and update the specifications
for materials and equipment that have
become outdated. The amendments do
not alter the testing or criteria in the
Standard for determining the
flammability of a fabric or whether it is
permissible for use in clothing; rather,
they facilitate accurate testing and
classifications by clarifying existing
requirements and updating material and
equipment specifications to reflect
currently available materials,
equipment, and technologies.
The amendments proposed in the
NPR and adopted in this final rule
address three areas of the Standard.
First, they aim to clarify and streamline
the provisions regarding test result
codes (i.e., burn codes), which help
determine the classification of a textile
and whether it may be used for clothing.
The amendments remove an
unnecessary code and revise wording in
the provisions to clarify the existing
requirements. Second, the amendments
revise the stop thread specification,
which indicates the thread that must be
used in flammability testing. The
description has become unclear, as
threads matching the description in the
Standard are no longer readily available.
Third, amendments revise the
refurbishing requirements in the
Standard, which address dry cleaning
and laundering specimens during the
testing process. In recent years, there
have been increasing restrictions on the
use of the dry cleaning solvent specified
in the Standard, and washing machines
that meet the specifications required in
the Standard are no longer made.
The NPR and CPSC staff’s briefing
package supporting it included detailed
information about the need for the
amendments, the rationale for the
revisions, and test results illustrating
the comparability of the flammability
classifications under the existing
Standard and amendments. The NPR
also included detailed information
about 16 CFR 1610.40 of the Standard,
which permits the use of alternative
apparatus, procedures, or criteria for
tests for guaranty purposes. This
allowance permits the continued use of
the dry cleaning solvent and laundering
methods in the current Standard by
relying on CPSC’s test results
demonstrating the comparability of test
results under the current Standard and
the amendments.
This final rule adopts the
amendments proposed in the NPR, with
only minor modifications. Therefore,
this notice focuses on comments
received in response to the NPR and the
minor modifications in the final rule.
For detailed information about the
amendments, the rationale for them, the
E:\FR\FM\25OCR1.SGM
25OCR1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 205 (Wednesday, October 25, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 73219-73221]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23519]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 25
[Docket No. FAA-2022-1740; Special Conditions No. 25-841-SC]
Special Conditions: The Boeing Company Model 777 Series
Airplanes; Passenger Seats With Pretensioner Restraint Systems
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Final special conditions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: These special conditions are issued for The Boeing Company
(Boeing) Model 777 series airplanes. These airplanes have a novel or
unusual design feature when compared to the state of technology
envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport category
airplanes. This design feature is pretensioner restraint systems
installed on passenger seats. The applicable airworthiness regulations
do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design
feature. These special conditions contain the additional safety
standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a
level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing
airworthiness standards.
DATES: Effective November 24, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shannon Lennon, Cabin Safety, AIR-624,
Technical Policy Branch, Policy and Standards Division, Aircraft
Certification Service, Federal Aviation Administration, 2200 South
216th Street, Des Moines, Washington 98198; telephone and fax 206-231-
3209; email [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On September 30, 2021, Boeing applied for an amendment to Type
Certificate No. T00001SE for Boeing Model 777 series airplanes. These
airplanes, currently approved under Type Certificate No. T00001SE, are
twin-engine, transport-category airplanes with maximum seating for 495
passengers and a maximum takeoff weight of 775,000 pounds.
Type Certification Basis
Under the provisions of 14 CFR 21.101, Boeing must show that Model
777 series airplanes meet the applicable provisions of the regulations
listed in Type Certificate No. T00001SE, or the applicable regulations
in effect on the date of application for the change, except for earlier
amendments as agreed upon by the FAA.
If the Administrator finds that the applicable airworthiness
regulations (e.g., 14 CFR part 25) do not contain adequate or
appropriate safety standards for Boeing Model 777 series airplanes
because of a novel or unusual design feature, special conditions are
prescribed under the provisions of Sec. 21.16.
Special conditions are initially applicable to the model for which
they are issued. Should the type certificate for that model be amended
later to include any other model that incorporates the same novel or
unusual design feature, or should any other model already included on
the same type certificate be modified to incorporate the same novel or
unusual design feature, these special conditions would also apply to
the other model under Sec. 21.101.
In addition to the applicable airworthiness regulations and special
conditions, Boeing Model 777 series airplanes must comply with the
fuel-vent and exhaust-emission requirements of 14 CFR part 34, and the
noise-certification requirements of 14 CFR part 36.
The FAA issues special conditions, as defined in 14 CFR 11.19, in
accordance with Sec. 11.38, and they become part of the type
certification basis under Sec. 21.101.
Novel or Unusual Design Features
Boeing Model 777 series airplanes will incorporate the following
novel or unusual design feature:
Forward-facing seats incorporating a shoulder harness with
pretensioner
[[Page 73220]]
device, otherwise known as a pretensioner restraint system, which is
intended to protect the occupants from head injuries.
Discussion
Boeing will install, in Model 777 series airplanes, forward-facing
seats that incorporate a shoulder harness with a pretensioner system,
for head-injury protection, at each seat place.
Shoulder harnesses have been widely used on flight-attendant seats,
flight-deck seats, in business jets, and in general-aviation airplanes
to reduce occupant head injury in the event of an emergency landing.
Special conditions, pertinent regulations, and published guidance
relate to other restraint systems. However, the use of pretensioners in
the restraint system on transport-airplane seats is a novel design.
The pretensioner restraint system utilizes a retractor that
eliminates slack in the shoulder harness and pulls the occupant back
into the seat prior to impact. This has the effect of reducing forward
translation of the occupant, reducing head arc, and reducing loads in
the shoulder harness.
Pretensioner technology involves a step-change in loading
experienced by the occupant for impacts below and above that at which
the device deploys, because activation of the shoulder harness, at the
point at which the pretensioner engages, interrupts upper-torso
excursion. Such excursion could result in the head-injury criteria
(HIC) being higher at an intermediate impact condition than that
resulting from the maximum impact condition corresponding to the test
conditions specified in Sec. 25.562. See condition 1 in these special
conditions.
The ideal triangular maximum-severity pulse is defined in Advisory
Circular (AC) 25.562-1B, ``Dynamic Evaluation of Seat Restraint Systems
and Occupant Protection on Transport Airplanes.'' For the evaluation
and testing of less-severe pulses for purposes of assessing the
effectiveness of the pretensioner setting, a similar triangular pulse
should be used with acceleration, rise time, and velocity change scaled
accordingly. The magnitude of the required pulse should not deviate
below the ideal pulse by more than 0.5g until 1.33 t1 is reached, where
t1 represents the time interval between 0 and t1 on the referenced
pulse shape, as shown in AC 25.562-1B. This is an acceptable method of
compliance to the test requirements of the special conditions.
Additionally, the pretensioner might not provide protection, after
actuation, during secondary impacts. Therefore, the case where a small
impact is followed by a large impact should be addressed. If the
minimum deceleration severity at which the pretensioner is set to
deploy is unnecessarily low, the protection offered by the pretensioner
may be lost by the time a second, larger impact occurs.
Conditions 1 through 4 ensure that the pretensioner system
activates when intended, to provide the necessary protection of
occupants. This includes protection of a range of occupants under
various accident conditions. Conditions 5 through 10 address
maintenance and reliability of the pretensioner system, including any
outside influences on the mechanism, to ensure it functions as
intended.
The special conditions contain the additional safety standards that
the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety
equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.
Discussion of Comments
The FAA issued Notice of Proposed Special Conditions No. 25-23-01-
SC for Boeing Model 777 airplanes, which was published in the Federal
Register on May 11, 2023 (88 FR 30262).
The FAA received one response, from the Air Line Pilots
Association, International, in support of the special conditions. The
special conditions are adopted as proposed.
Applicability
As discussed above, these special conditions are applicable to
Boeing Model 777 series airplanes. Should Boeing apply at a later date
for a change to the type certificate to include another model
incorporating the same novel or unusual design feature, these special
conditions would apply to that model as well.
Conclusion
This action affects only a certain novel or unusual design feature
on one model series of airplanes. It is not a rule of general
applicability.
List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 25
Aircraft, Aviation safety, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Authority Citation
The authority citation for these special conditions is as follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g), 40113, 44701, 44702, 44704.
The Special Conditions
0
Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to me by the
Administrator, the following special conditions are issued as part of
the type certification basis for Boeing Model 777 series airplanes.
In addition to the requirements of Sec. 25.562, forward-facing
passenger seats with pretensioner restraint systems must meet the
following:
(1) Head Injury Criteria (HIC)
The HIC value must not exceed 1000 at any condition at which the
pretensioner does or does not deploy, up to the maximum severity pulse
that corresponds to the test conditions specified in Sec. 25.562.
Tests must be performed to demonstrate this, taking into account any
necessary tolerances for deployment.
When an airbag device is present in addition to the pretensioner
restraint system, and the anthropomorphic test device (ATD) has no
apparent contact with the seat/structure but has contact with an
airbag, a HIC unlimited score in excess of 1000 is acceptable, provided
the HIC15 score (calculated in accordance with 49 CFR 571.208) for that
contact is less than 700.
ATD head contact with the seat or other structure, through the
airbag, or contact subsequent to contact with the airbag, requires a
HIC value that does not exceed 1000.
(2) Protection During Secondary Impacts
The pretensioner activation setting must be demonstrated to
maximize the probability of the protection being available when needed,
considering secondary impacts.
(3) Protection of Occupants Other Than 50th Percentile
Protection of occupants for a range of stature from a 2-year-old
child to a 95th percentile male must be shown. For shoulder harnesses
that include pretensioners, protection of occupants other than a 50th
percentile male may be shown by test or analysis. In addition, the
pretensioner must not introduce a hazard to passengers due to the
following seating configurations:
(a) The seat occupant is holding an infant.
(b) The seat occupant is a child in a child-restraint device.
(c) The seat occupant is a pregnant woman.
(4) Occupants Adopting the Brace Position
Occupants in the traditional brace position when the pretensioner
activates must not experience adverse effects from the pretensioner
activation.
[[Page 73221]]
(5) Inadvertent Pretensioner Actuation
(a) The probability of inadvertent pretensioner actuation must be
shown to be extremely remote (i.e., average probability per flight hour
of less than 10-7.
(b) The system must be shown not to be susceptible to inadvertent
pretensioner actuation as a result of wear and tear, nor inertia loads
resulting from in-flight or ground maneuvers likely to be experienced
in service.
(c) The seated occupant must not be seriously injured as a result
of inadvertent pretensioner actuation.
(d) Inadvertent pretensioner actuation must not cause a hazard to
the airplane, nor cause serious injury to anyone who may be positioned
close to the retractor or belt (e.g., seated in an adjacent seat or
standing adjacent to the seat).
(6) Availability of the Pretensioner Function Prior to Flight
The design must provide means for a crewmember to verify the
availability of the pretensioner function prior to each flight, or the
probability of failure of the pretensioner function must be
demonstrated to be extremely remote (i.e., average probability per
flight hour of less than 10-7) between inspection intervals.
(7) Incorrect Seat Belt Orientation
The system design must ensure that any incorrect orientation
(twisting) of the seat belt does not compromise the pretensioner
protection function.
(8) Contamination Protection
The pretensioner mechanisms and controls must be protected from
external contamination associated with that which could occur on or
around passenger seating.
(9) Prevention of Hazards
The pretensioner system must not induce a hazard to passengers in
case of fire, nor create a fire hazard, if activated.
(10) Functionality After Loss of Power
The system must function properly after loss of normal airplane
electrical power and after a transverse separation in the fuselage at
the most critical location. A separation at the location of the system
does not have to be considered.
Issued in Kansas City, Missouri, on October 19, 2023.
Patrick R. Mullen,
Manager, Technical Policy Branch, Policy and Standards Division,
Aircraft Certification Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-23519 Filed 10-24-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P
