ISOFIX child car seat (isofix), what is it?
Height, weight, age of a small passenger, quality of materials, backrest, comfort package, reliability, safety, crash tests, standards and certification ... What else do parents need to consider when choosing a children's car seat? Mounting — reliable and proper — is an essential element in the effectiveness of a holding device. Isofix mount is becoming increasingly common-what is it, why, how does it work, is it worth buying?
The main feature of the system is without the use of standard seat belts (although this option does not exclude it), at the same time it is as fast, simple and reliable as possible, as confirmed by numerous tests. The Isofix (International Standards Organization Fix) mount was developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This standard international interface is designed so that the bulk of its safety features are moved under the car seat and attached directly to the chassis. You can buy an ISOFIX car seat with delivery to Kiev, Odessa, Kharkov and throughout Ukraine in the online store 130.com.ua.
Benefits
Models with such a fastening have special guides at the back, with the help of which they are rigidly fixed to the car body, and the child is fixed with internal 5-point safety belts. A car involving the installation of a car seat with the Isofix system has corresponding metal loops at the base of the standard seat. They can be issued in different ways and, as a rule, are accompanied by marking. The chair is attached to them with a pair of built-in brackets. Special guides allow you to do this easily and quickly. To remove a chair is just to unlock the locks with one button. The developers of this mount were able to achieve their goal-the error-free and easy installation of a car seat. That is, the mount design allows you to install the seat either correctly or in any way.
Numerous experiments show that the often disputed rigid fixation is still effective in this case. It is proved that the stability of a seat in a collision makes the entire restraining structure work faster, while the internal belts are designed so that the safety system is flexible and resilient. The passenger is better protected and experiences less strain on the neck.
To achieve greater stability, manufacturers can use a third attachment point: the so-called “top tether”-an anchor belt (for example, Heyner child car seats are often equipped with it) or additional emphasis on the floor (the so-called base).
- An anchor belt is located at the top of the back and fastens to a loop in the ceiling or floor of a car (see, for example, Heyner Multifix Ergo 3D Isofix or Heyner Multifix AERO Isofix in the catalog 130.com.ua). An option with an emphasis is an additional “foot” to the floor (for example, the base for the Romer Baby-Safe Isofix car seat is more bulky, but universal (hinges are not always provided). Fasteners with a third reference point lighten the load on other fastening components and reduce the risk of dangerous nodding forward in a frontal collision.
- The Isofix base can be easily fastened with regular standard safety belts, universal for all machines. So you can secure such a seat with a regular belt in an older car, and without spending too much time-for a 2-minute trip to kindergarten.
Limitations
A child’s weight up to 18 kg is the main limitation; heavy loads with hard impacts require the highest strength of loops and other parts of the system. Therefore, groups 0 and 1 are more common in the sale of Isofix car seats. But this convenient system has also been used in the older groups 2 and 3, already performing additional holding functions, providing greater reliability and safety in side impacts.
There is a problem of individual selection for a particular car model. Due to the lack of uniform standards for the rear seats (tilt angle, height, pillows), seats with such a mount must be checked and selected for a specific car.
Designed back in 1990, such a fastening of a child car seat due to its advantages, proven reliability and efficiency, which reduces the risk of dangerous situations on the road, is becoming more popular. And it has already become the basis for international requirements for passenger cars and child restraintsm devices. You can evaluate these advantages and ease of use right now-choose and buy a Isofix car seat , and we will try to help you with this.