Thatcham Research: 50 years of improving car safety

For the past 50 years Thatcham Research has helped save drivers' lives.

Initially, the research at the Berkshire centre focused on the performance of cars in crashes, but now it tries to prevent crashes from happening at all.

At the heart of the research is the crash test dummy, the first named Sierra Sam, was made in 1949.

Today, more sophisticated models are in use, fitted with the instrumentation to measure impacts on specific body parts.