Ford’s ‘Empathy Belly’ teaches engineers what it’s like to be pregnant

There’s an old proverb that says something along the lines of: You can never really understand a person until you walk a mile in her shoes.

But that’s really hard for a man if he’s trying to understand how a woman feels when she’s in her third trimester.

Ford, however, has been taking the proverb’s premise seriously when designing automobiles. In fact, the company started using an “Empathy Belly” a decade ago to design more comfortable vehicles for pregnant women.

Katie Allanson, interaction and ergonomics core engineer for Ford Motor Co., said using things like the Empathy Belly and Aged Suit are key for engineers designing today’s cars. It truly lets engineers wear someone else’s “shoes” – even if it’s just for a couple of minutes.

The Empathy Belly adds about 30 pounds of weight and includes two lead balls that simulate where a fetus’ limbs would press into a woman’s organs and a pressure bladder that, well, pushes on your bladder like a baby would. The Aged Suit, however, includes goggles, gloves and other materials that restrict movement, add bulk and simulate movement of a person who is 30 years older than your present self.

Allanson said they get the suits out at least four times a year for training purposes, especially targeting the male engineers and just-out-of-college graduates. The goal is to get them to put on the Empathy Belly and then try things like opening a car door, adjusting the seat for their pregnant form, reaching for cup holders, adjusting the climate controls and getting items out of the back seat.

“I get a kick out of watching them get in and out of the car because they think they can do everything normally,” Allanson said. “But they can’t because the belly is in the way.”

I tested the Empathy Belly myself, and in addition to a distinct waddle, I noticed how difficult it was not only to get in and out of the car but also to adjust the seat and even reach the seat belt.

Though a woman will get used to the changes in her body gradually and adjust accordingly, it’s an eye-opener to see just how drastic the difference is between a “normal” driving position and a pregnant one.

Being just shy of 5 feet tall, I could barely reach the pedals when I adjusted the seat to accommodate my large belly. And a car with a clutch? Forget about it.

Lest you think that women stop driving in their third trimester, Nielson conducted a study in conjunction with Ford earlier this year, and it showed that 88 percent of women never stop driving during their pregnancies.

Thus Allanson and her team pay particular attention to the placement of things as simple as a cup holder in the cars they engineer. Can you reach it around a pregnant belly?

Since so many women are driving right up to delivery, how can expectant mothers stay safe behind the wheel? Allanson referenced a collaboration Ford did with Well Rounded NY and rattled off several helpful hints for pregnant women to follow:

1.Always wear a seat belt. Allanson said many women thought it might be safer to drive without wearing a belt, but that’s absolutely not the case. You just need to make sure you wear it properly. It should be low and tight over your hips or upper thighs – not over the belly. The shoulder harness should be positioned across the chest, between the breasts and to the side of the belly.

2.Take off bulky clothes before driving. You want the seat belt to be as close to your body as possible, so taking off a bulky sweater or winter coat before driving will give you the best fit.

3.Give yourself extra time to get ready in the car. Having everything you need within easy reach -- such as water, tissues or snacks – will help limit distractions and ensure that you’re not reaching behind you to grab something while you’re driving.

4.Move the seat as far back as possible. You still want to be able to reach the pedals comfortably, but you want to make sure that you’re back far enough so that your belly doesn’t touch the steering wheel. It’s especially helpful if you have memory seats to set Memory 1 for your driving position and Memory 2 for your egress/ingress setting.

5.Proper posture is key. If you like to recline while driving, you may have to give up that seating position as you enter your third trimester. The goal is to support your low back with the extra weight pressing down on your belly. So the best seating positions will likely be an upright seatback (100 degrees, rather than a straight up 90), and a seat bottom that will position your knees level to or below your hips.

6.Don’t reach for the steering wheel. You shouldn’t be right on top of the steering wheel, but you shouldn’t be reaching for it either. There should be enough space that the wheel isn’t hitting your belly, but you should have a soft bend in your elbows while holding the wheel.

For more tips on driving while pregnant, visit the Well Rounded NY website.

Allanson said tools like the Empathy Belly and Aged Suit are really important for engineers to use when designing cars.

“We aren’t just designing for 25-year-olds right out of school,” Allanson said. “There are all sorts of people at all stages in life. You have to think about that when you’re designing everything from cup holders to mirrors.”

The ultimate goal of the Empathy Belly is to give engineers additional perspective before designing features in cars. Allanson said it gives everyone the opportunity to spend a few minutes in the life of someone else.

“I want them to never forget this experience,” she said.

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