Development and validation of a 5th percentile human head finite element model based on the Chinese population

Abstract

A high biofidelic 5th percentile human head finite element (FE) model, based on the Chinese population, was developed and validated. Geometrical characteristics of the finite element model were extracted from the medical CT scan images of a 5th percentile living human from the Chinese population, instead of using the scaling law copying down from a 50th percentile model. The newly created model incorporates the essential features of the human head, which include the scalp, three layers of skull, cerebrum, cerebellum, brain stem, corpus callosum, cerebrospinal fluid, ventricles, sinus, falx cerebri, tentorium cerebelli, pia mater, dura mater, facial bone, mandible, facial muscle, masseter, temporalis, submandibular soft tissue, detailed ocular structures and teeth. Model validations under different impact conditions from Nahum and Trosseille's experiments were carried out. Parametric studies were subsequently performed to investigate model responses with variations of tissue material properties. Furthermore, the effect of cavitation pressure was also investigated. Keywords: 5th percentile human head models; impact injury; brain pressure; Chinese population; finite element method; FEM; modelling; head injuries; China; model validation; tissue materials; cavitation pressure.