ABSTRACT
Personal restraints should be used to prevent and protect users when undesirable movement, for example, falling from great heights, being ejected from a moving vehicle, could cause injury or loss of control. Lots of products incorporate personal restraints, and many more products probably should. The obvious example of restraints serving life-saving and injury-prevention purposes is seat belts in cars. Many other types of vehicles are or might be equipped with seat belts, such as airplanes, earth-moving equipment, and all-terrain vehicles. The benefit is clear–the restraints prevent people from being thrown from their seats due to sudden vehicle movements. Whereas restraints such as seat belts usually take the form of strong fabric belts and metal connectors, restraints can take the form of more rigid elements, such as those found on amusement park rides. In mental health facilities, patients might be restrained to prevent them from hurting themselves or others.
