Quote:
Originally Posted by offshorebear
Airbags are deployed by decelerometers. If anything a solid steel bumper will cause the airbags to go off easier in minor accidents.
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Most airbag crash sensors are so simple that you guys would probably be surprised if you ever had the chance to take one apart.
Most crash sensors are nothing but a small steel ball (usually gold plated) held by a magnet. If the force of a crash is great enough to dislodge the ball from the magnet, then the airbag is deployed. In reality, it's a little bit more complicated then that, but the idea is the same. All vehicles have both crash sensors and safing sensors. In order for the airbags to deploy, at least one safing sensor must also trigger in addition to a crash sensor.
I believe most car manufacturers design their sensors to trigger at about 7G's of force.
