The ride must have been designed after a certain body type. That's what decided the size of the restraints, seat and everything. The designers/engineers must have based it on some kind of measurements and shapes. What those are I have no idea. Show those to the rides ops and only allow guests that conform to those to be able to ride. It's just an idea, though I prefer seatbelts, that's easier.
Manufacturers set the parameters. They decide what the minimum and maximum height is, and design the restraint to hold up to a certain circumference within those height parameters.
The ride should therefore be designed so that if the restraint indicates a locked status, and you’re within those height parameters, then you are safe in the ride regardless of your shape. If the restraint indicates that it’s locked, you’re within the height limits and yet you’re still not safe, then that is a design flaw.
Expecting staff, often young staff, to consider shape, circumference, and the size of a rider’s rear end would introduce far too much room for human error.
I am not sure we can buy the argument that rides should be designed for overweight people. By doing that it makes them inherently unsafe for smaller (arguably correctly sized) people. Case in point my kids get moved out of the "big boy" seats on Icon at Blackpool Pleasure Beach because while tall enough for the ride, those seats are too "free". I am 6'2 and broadly built and even I move about too much in them!
All for inclusivity, offering alternative seats designed for larger folk but when we start talking about gearing ride design in general to favour larger people over those that are making good life choices feels very off to me.
The above is not in the context of this tragic accident but in response to the general chat.
On the topic of feeling bad about being curious about how this happened. Don't feel bad, it's human. It's only natural for us to want to feel comfortable that what happened wouldn't happen to us.
Nobody is suggesting that happens. Rather that manufacturer's have to design the ride for all shapes and sizes within a range of heights.
My point was that if ride manufacturers have to start narrowing down the size of people that can ride, which do you think parks would want them to go for, healthy sized people who make up less than a third of the US population, and start limiting their customer base and thus profits, or overweight people who make up more than two thirds?
Obviously this was a hypothetical question, as it shouldn’t be needed. Most manufacturers manage to design a restraint that can safely hold anyone who can physically fit inside a restraint that indicates it is locked. See my reply above.