Believe it or not but padded dashboards came about on wagons. Even the term " dashboard " comes from the parts of a wagon. On a wagon a dashboard is the part that is in front of the driver and protests his/her legs.. It was padded for further protection.
To soften the blow in the event of a collision.
Increase the time of impact in a collision.
airbags, cushioning, seatbelts and padded dashboards
They are safer because a person hitting the dashboard has a padding.
The padding reduces impact and injury and extends collision time.
What would hurt more, falling on cement or falling on a large pillow? The same principle works with padded dash boards. The padding gives less resistance and will absorb more of the impact of your body on the dash, than a hard plastic dash board.
The first safety features were brakes, padded dashboards and safety belts. These automobile features were inspired from studies done by Cornell Aeronautical Labs.
They help prevent injuries to the occupants. In an accident, the contents of the vehicle, including the people in it, are thrown around violently. While you can still receive an injury from contact with the dashboard, the padding reduces the severity.
Padded dashboards are used to reduce injury this is because as your head hits a hard object and stops your brain in side keeps moving and impacts with the inside of your skull, anything that slows down this deceleration will help to save your brain and also your skull, even a little padding can mean the difference between life and death.
Vacuum forming uses ABS plastic sheet, I believe this is what dashboards are made from
Padding slows the occupant hitting it down "slightly slower" that if the same occupant hit a non padded dash. (it reduces the G forces experienced, helping to prevent injury.) The padding acts (to a much lesser degree) like a parachute acts to slow a person falling from the sky. Also, a padded dash help to avoid the person hitting "sharp" parts of the dash. Consider jumping onto a "bed of nails" and then jumping on to the same bed of nails with a mattress over the top of it. Same effect.
my parcel was Padded. So nothing inside it broke.