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The Vehicle Object

A Vehicle represents a vehicle involved in an accident. Vehicles are nested within a Case and can have associated crash parameters computed from damage analysis.

Object Structure

{
"id": "veh_abc123",
"role": "plaintiff",
"make": "Toyota",
"model": "Camry",
"year": "2020",
"vin": "4T1B11HK5LU123456",
"type": "sedan",
"airbag_deployed": "yes",
"deployed_airbags": ["driver_frontal", "driver_knee"],
"edr_file_id": null,
"image_file_ids": ["file_img1", "file_img2", "file_img3"],
"files": [
{
"id": "file_img1",
"name": "front_damage.jpg",
"size": 245000,
"type": "image/jpeg",
"category": "vehicle_photo",
"url": "https://storage.silentwitness.ai/...",
"uploaded_at": "2024-01-15T10:35:00Z"
}
],
"crash_parameters": {
"delta_v_min": 8.5,
"delta_v_max": 12.3,
"delta_v_method": "ml",
"pdof_degrees": 180,
"crash_pulse_min_ms": 12,
"crash_pulse_max_ms": 100,
"calculated_at": "2024-01-15T12:00:00Z"
}
}

Attributes

Core Fields

AttributeTypeDescription
idstringUnique identifier with veh_ prefix
rolestringVehicle role: plaintiff or defendant
makestringManufacturer (e.g., "Toyota", "Ford")
modelstringModel name (e.g., "Camry", "F-150")
yearstringModel year (e.g., "2020")
vinstringVehicle Identification Number (17 characters)
typestringVehicle type: sedan, suv, truck, van, motorcycle, other

Airbag Deployment

AttributeTypeDescription
airbag_deployedstringSummary status for the whole vehicle: yes, no, partial, or unknown. Recommended on every request; if omitted, the API infers it from deployed_airbags (see below).
deployed_airbagsarrayOptional list of the specific airbags known to have deployed

These fields answer two different questions:

  • airbag_deployed answers: did any airbag deploy in this vehicle?
  • deployed_airbags answers: which specific airbags are documented as deployed?

Use airbag_deployed even when you do not know the exact airbag types. Use deployed_airbags only when the source material identifies specific deployed airbags.

Status Values

airbag_deployed valueMeaningdeployed_airbags behavior
yesOne or more airbags deployedMay contain specific deployed airbag codes, or [] if the exact airbags are not known
partialThe record indicates partial deployment or incomplete deployment detailMay contain known deployed airbag codes, or [] if no specific airbags are known
noNo airbags deployedStored as []
unknownAirbag deployment status is not knownStored as []

An empty deployed_airbags array does not always mean "no deployment." It means "no specific deployed airbag detail was captured." Use airbag_deployed to determine the vehicle-level status.

When creating or updating a vehicle, prefer sending both fields when you have both pieces of information:

{
"airbag_deployed": "yes",
"deployed_airbags": ["driver_frontal", "driver_knee"]
}

If you only know that airbags deployed, but not which ones:

{
"airbag_deployed": "yes",
"deployed_airbags": []
}

If the source says deployment was partial, but does not identify specific airbags:

{
"airbag_deployed": "partial",
"deployed_airbags": []
}

If no airbags deployed:

{
"airbag_deployed": "no",
"deployed_airbags": []
}

If deployment status is unknown:

{
"airbag_deployed": "unknown",
"deployed_airbags": []
}

For updates, omit deployed_airbags to leave existing detail codes unchanged. Send deployed_airbags: [] to clear existing detail codes.

For backward compatibility, if deployed_airbags is sent with one or more values and airbag_deployed is omitted, the API infers airbag_deployed: "yes" unless the existing vehicle is already marked partial. Even with that compatibility behavior, new integrations should send airbag_deployed explicitly.

If airbag_deployed is explicitly no or unknown, the API stores deployed_airbags as [] even if detail codes are included in the request.

Allowed deployed_airbags Values

Seating areaAllowed values
Driverdriver_frontal, driver_knee, driver_side_curtain, driver_side_torso
Front passengerfront_passenger_frontal, front_passenger_knee, front_passenger_side_curtain, front_passenger_side_torso
Rear driver-siderear_driver_side_curtain, rear_driver_side_torso
Rear passenger-siderear_passenger_side_curtain, rear_passenger_side_torso

File References

AttributeTypeDescription
edr_file_idstringFile ID of uploaded EDR data (null if not uploaded)
image_file_idsarrayArray of file IDs for uploaded damage photos
filesarrayFull file objects with metadata and URLs (for display)

File Object

AttributeTypeDescription
idstringFile identifier
namestringOriginal filename
sizeintegerFile size in bytes
typestringMIME type (e.g., "image/jpeg")
categorystringFile category (e.g., "vehicle_photo")
urlstringSigned URL for file access
uploaded_atstringISO 8601 upload timestamp

Crash Parameters

AttributeTypeDescription
crash_parametersobjectComputed crash analysis data (null until calculated)

See Crash Parameters for the full object structure.

Vehicle Types

ValueDescription
sedanStandard passenger car
suvSport utility vehicle
truckPickup truck
vanMinivan or cargo van
motorcycleMotorcycle
otherOther vehicle type