Autoliv HBM Safety Suite Advances Virtual Vehicle Safety

Autoliv Develops Integrated Virtual Safety Platform

Autoliv Inc has developed the Autoliv HBM Safety Suite, an integrated virtual safety platform designed to support vehicle safety development. The Human Body Model Safety Suite combines a digital human model for crash simulation with software tools that evaluate safety performance in virtual environments. The platform is intended to help engineers optimize safety solutions for a diverse range of occupants while providing additional insight into occupant response and injury mechanisms. By adding virtual evaluation capabilities alongside physical crash testing, the system is designed to support safety optimization earlier in vehicle development and provide engineers with more information during the development process.

Digital Human Modeling Supports Earlier Safety Optimization

The HBM Safety Suite uses a digital human model to simulate crash scenarios and assess occupant safety within a virtual environment. Its software tools are designed to evaluate safety performance and help engineers examine occupant responses and injury mechanisms in greater detail. This approach complements physical crash testing rather than replacing it, giving development teams an additional source of information when assessing safety solutions. According to Autoliv Inc, the combination of virtual analysis and physical testing can enable safety solutions to be optimized earlier in the development process, potentially reducing development lead times while improving cost efficiency.

Toyota Begins Evaluating the Safety Suite

Toyota is the first customer to use the HBM Safety Suite and has started evaluating its capabilities as part of its virtual safety development activities. The evaluation gives Toyota an opportunity to assess how the integrated digital human model and supporting software can contribute to its existing vehicle safety development work. The customer deployment also provides an early industry application of the platform as Autoliv prepares for broader availability. The evaluation remains focused on the suite's capabilities within virtual safety development and its potential to provide additional information alongside established physical crash-testing activities.

Broader Industry Availability Planned for 2026

Autoliv plans to make the HBM Safety Suite available more broadly across the automotive industry in 2026. Wider availability would extend access to the virtual safety platform beyond its first customer and allow additional vehicle development teams to evaluate its digital human modeling and safety-analysis capabilities. The platform is positioned around earlier safety optimization, additional information on occupant response and injury mechanisms, shorter development lead times, and improved cost efficiency. Toyota is currently the first customer evaluating the technology, while broader industry availability is planned as the next stage in the platform's development.

Industry Impact & Outlook

The HBM Safety Suite could strengthen the role of virtual engineering in vehicle safety development by giving automakers another way to assess occupant response and injury mechanisms before or alongside physical crash testing. Its significance is particularly relevant to development teams seeking to optimize safety solutions earlier while managing development time and cost. The initial evaluation by Toyota provides an industry use case for the platform, while Autoliv's planned broader availability in 2026 could determine how widely the approach is adopted. The next step will be broader industry access and continued evaluation of the platform's effectiveness in vehicle safety development.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Autoliv HBM Safety Suite?
The Autoliv HBM Safety Suite is an integrated virtual safety platform that combines a digital human model for crash simulation with software tools for evaluating vehicle safety performance. It is designed to provide additional information about occupant response and injury mechanisms alongside physical crash testing. The platform can help engineers optimize safety solutions earlier in the vehicle development process, with the intended benefits of reducing development lead times and improving cost efficiency. Toyota is the first customer using the suite and has begun evaluating its capabilities in virtual safety development activities.