Since the early 1960s, when Volvo first patented the modern three-point safety belt, there hasn’t been much advancement in seatbelt technology. However, vehicles themselves have evolved considerably, now equipped with sensors, cameras, and powerful computers to enable advanced driver assistance and anti-collision technologies.

Volvo now seeks to leverage these advancements for seatbelts. Traditional safety belts employ load limiters to regulate the force exerted on the wearer during an accident. Volvo’s new seatbelt expands the load-limiting options from three to 11 different profiles and increases adjustable settings, allowing it to customize its response more accurately to various situations and individuals.

As such, Volvo can use sensor data to customize seatbelts based on a person’s height, weight, body shape, and seating position. A larger occupant, for example, would receive a higher belt load setting to help reduce the risk of a head injury in a crash, while a smaller person in a milder crash would receive a lower belt load setting to reduce the risk of rib fractures.

During a crash, Volvo says its vehicles’ safety systems will share sensor data — such as direction, speed, and passenger posture — with multi-adaptive seatbelts to determine how much force to apply to the occupant’s body. And using over-the-air software updates, Volvo promises that the seatbelts can improve over time.

Volvo has previously deviated from traditional practices to introduce new technologies meant to underscore its commitment to safety. The company limits the top speed on all of its vehicles to 112 mph — notably below the 155 mph established by a “gentleman’s agreement” between Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW to reduce the number of fatalities on the Autobahn.

The new seatbelts will debut in the Volvo EX60, the automaker’s mid-sized electric SUV which is scheduled to come out next year.