Ford is manufacturing a seat belt for rear seat passengers that will inflate on impact, according to a report in the Daily Mail.

The device will be introduced on the Ford Explorer 4x4 which will be produced in the US in 2010. 

The seatbelt inflates over the chest and shoulder in 40 milliseconds – the amount of time it takes a car to travel one yard at motorway speeds – and is designed to prevent bruising, internal damage and broken ribs in a road accident.

It is thought the device will be especially useful for drivers with children as passengers in the back seat – and if trials are successful, the inflating rear seltbelt could be introduced in vehicles in the UK.

The belt looks like a normal seat belt, but compressed gas stored below the seats fills the airbag. This in turn breaks through the seatbelt to spread the force of any impact over an area five times larger than a traditional seatbelt.

The researchers say the action of the airbag on impact keeps the passenger in the safest position while seated – and reduces pressure on the chest, as well as controlling head and neck movement.

More than 90 per cent of those who tested the belts said they felt as comfortable or were an improvement on traditional seatbelts.

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