Wanted: Local dummies to replace imports in auto crash tests

Soft target dummies are human-shaped testing objects used outside a vehicle. They imitate vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians, during tests of advanced safety systems. Their purpose is to see whether a vehicle notices a person and responds before a collision. This matters as India prepares tougher vehicle testing.

A vehicle may use automatic emergency braking or pedestrian detection during a controlled test. The soft target moves or stands in a road scenario, and engineers measure whether the vehicle detects it, warns the driver, or brakes. Occupant crash-test dummies serve a different purpose. They are placed inside vehicles to measure forces and possible injuries during a crash. The article focuses on external ADAS targets, not passenger-injury dummies.

ARAI says imported soft targets do not represent Indian body proportions and road conditions well. It is developing local versions using Indian anthropometric studies, foam materials, and new external and internal designs. These could make ADAS testing more realistic for India.

ARAI plans to manufacture soft target dummies in India for ADAS testing. The main reason is accuracy. Imported models, mainly from European countries and also supplied by China, Japan, and Germany, do not adequately represent Indian body proportions or local road conditions. That can weaken the value of test results.

For example, Indian roads include pedestrians with children, moped riders, three-wheelers, small commercial vehicles, cows, and dogs. These users have different shapes, movements, and interactions with vehicles. ARAI’s project includes studying Indian anthropometry, selecting suitable foam, and designing and molding the dummies’ outer forms and internal structures. The aim is to reproduce local test situations more faithfully.

The project is also intended to reduce imports. ARAI’s FY26 annual report calls localization an internal project to address imported dummies’ limitations. The effort matters as India expands testing capacity and prepares tougher crash tests under Bharat National Car Accreditation Program 2.0 from October 2027.

India recorded 487,705 road accidents and 177 fatalities from road mishaps in 2024, according to the latest publicly available National Crime Records Bureau data cited in the article. Those figures show why vehicle safety systems need to work reliably in everyday Indian conditions. Pedestrians and other vulnerable road users face particular risks around moving traffic.

Soft-target tests help measure whether a vehicle detects a person and responds to a possible collision. Engineers can test automatic emergency braking and pedestrian-detection systems in controlled situations. They can then assess whether the vehicle identifies the target, warns the driver, or brakes effectively. Better testing does not guarantee that every crash will be prevented, but it can reveal weaknesses in safety-system performance.

ARAI is developing Indian versions of these targets because local body proportions and road scenarios differ from global test conditions. More representative tests could improve ADAS calibration and development. The need becomes more pressing as India expands testing capacity and prepares tougher requirements from October 2027.

When a soft target does not match Indian body proportions, movements, or traffic surroundings, an ADAS test may not reproduce a real Indian road encounter. The result can be less accurate replication of local conditions. That matters because manufacturers and testing agencies use these results to assess systems such as automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection.

For instance, a target shaped or moving like a global test subject may not represent a moped rider, a pedestrian with a child, or another local road user. A vehicle could detect that target at a different distance, speed, or angle than it would detect an Indian road user. Engineers may then calibrate or tune the system using incomplete evidence. The system could respond too late, too early, or inconsistently in local situations.

ARAI says imported dummies lack Indian anthropometry and limits test replication for local conditions. Indigenous targets are intended to improve accuracy. This becomes important before tougher testing begins under the proposed program in October 2027.

ARAI says Indian ADAS must be calibrated and developed for road users and operating conditions found in India. The required range is broader than a single standard pedestrian shape. It includes people, animals, and vehicle categories that can interact in distinctive ways on Indian roads. Representing them can make testing more relevant to actual traffic situations.

The agency identifies three-wheelers and small commercial vehicles among the vehicle classes. It names cows and dogs as animals. It also lists moped riders, pedestrians, and pedestrians with children as vulnerable road users. Each can have different physical characteristics, movement patterns, and interaction behaviour. A test target or scenario therefore needs to reflect more than appearance; it must support realistic controlled testing of detection and response.

ARAI’s localization project includes anthropometric studies, foam selection, and molding external and internal dummy structures. The aim is to create India-specific solutions for on-track ADAS verification and validation. These targets could support more accurate safety development as testing becomes tougher.

India’s four nodal automotive testing agencies are the Automotive Research Association of India, or ARAI; the International Centre for Automotive Technology, or ICAT; the Global Automotive Research Centre, or GARC; and National Automotive Test Tracks, or NATRAX. Together, they form part of the country’s expanding vehicle-testing capacity.

The proposed Bharat National Car Accreditation Program 2.0 is expected to make India’s vehicle crash tests tougher starting in October 2027. The article does not specify every new test or exact requirement. It does establish that soft-target testing will help assess whether vehicles detect pedestrians and other vulnerable road users and respond effectively to possible collisions. More demanding assessments could therefore expose weaknesses in ADAS performance.

ARAI’s domestic dummy project is timed against this wider shift. Local targets could help manufacturers and testing agencies verify systems against Indian body characteristics and road scenarios. If the tougher program requires stronger evidence of safety, representative tests may become increasingly important for vehicle development and accreditation.

ADAS stands for advanced driver assistance systems. The article describes six automation levels, from Level 0, meaning no automation, to Level 5, meaning full driving automation. These levels indicate how much driving control a system can provide. ADAS is being tested for functions such as automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection.

India currently permits up to Level 2 ADAS. At this level, systems can control steering and acceleration or braking under certain conditions. They do not remove the driver’s responsibility. The driver must remain attentive, monitor the road at all times, and be prepared to respond. That requirement is especially important when a system encounters unusual Indian traffic situations or vulnerable road users.

ARAI wants local soft targets so Level 2 systems can be calibrated and validated against Indian conditions. Imported targets may not reflect local body proportions or movement patterns. Better representation could help engineers assess how systems detect and respond, while keeping human supervision central under the permitted level.