Chevrolet Engineers Use Video Game Tech to Help with Child Car Seats

If you’re a parent, you know the importance of using car seats for your small children. However, you also know that with the added safety comes a level of frustration—it can be difficult to install the seats, and, with so many different brands and styles to choose from, not all seats are the same size or even have the same features. And, just like parents, Chevrolet engineers find this nonconformity frustrating, which is why they started using the Kinect motion sensor for help with child car seats.

“There are over 250 different makes and models of child safety seats on the market, and new or revised models are introduced every year,” said Julie Kleinert, GM’s Global Child Safety Technical Lead, in a statement, “and the lack of an industry standard for the size and shape of child seats makes it quite challenging for vehicle engineers.”

Chevrolet wants to make sure that child car seats will be able to fit into their vehicles. Engineers found a way to use the Kinect motion sensor, originally developed for the Xbox 360, to determine child car seat compatibility.

Engineers use the Kinect controller to create a digital shape of a car seat and repeat that process with a variety of car seats to create a “surrogate” shape. This surrogate shows engineers the largest amount of space a certain type of car seat will need. They can then insert this shape into the digital designs of a vehicle to check for child seat compatibility.

If you’re feeling frustrated with your current family vehicle and have difficulty with your kids’ car seats, the adjustable second row of seats in the Chevrolet Traverse may be the answer to your problems. Come check it out today at Carter Chevrolet!