Oblique Impact Tests Research Articles

Quantitative analysis of the protective performance of bicycle helmet with multi-direction impact protection system in oblique impact tests

PurposeThe current study aimed to assess the protective performance of helmets equipped with multi-directional impact protection system (MIPS) under various oblique impact loads. MethodsInitially, a finite element model of a bicycle helmet with MIPS was developed based on the scanned geometric parameters of an actual bicycle helmet. Subsequently, the validity of model was confirmed using the KASK WG11 oblique impact test method. Three different impact angles (30°, 45°, and 60°) and 2 varying impact speeds (5 m/s and 8 m/s) were employed in oblique tests to evaluate protective performance of MIPS in helmets, focusing on injury assessment parameters such as peak linear acceleration (PLA) and peak angular acceleration (PAA) of the head. ResultsThe results demonstrated that in all impact simulations, both assessment parameters were lower during impact for helmets equipped with MIPS compared to those without. The PAA was consistently lower in the MIPS helmet group, whereas the difference in PLA was not significant in the no-MIPS helmet group. For instance, at an impact velocity of 8 m/s and a 30° inclined anvil, the MIPS helmet group exhibited a PAA of 3225 rad/s2 and a PLA of 281 g. In contrast, the no-MIPS helmet group displayed a PAA of 8243 rad/s2 and a PLA of 292 g. Generally, both PAA and PLA parameters decreased with the increase of anvil angles. At a 60° anvil angles, PAA and PLA values were 664 rad/s2 and 20.7 g, respectively, reaching their minimum. ConclusionThe findings indicated that helmets incorporating MIPS offer enhanced protection against various oblique impact loads. When assessing helmets for oblique impacts, the utilization of larger angle anvils and rear impacts might not adequately evaluate protective performance during an impact event. These findings will guide advancements in helmet design and the refinement of oblique impact test protocols.

Evaluation of an Elastomeric Honeycomb Bicycle Helmet Design to Mitigate Head Kinematics in Oblique Impacts.

Head impacts in bicycle accidents are typically oblique to the impact surface and transmit both normal and tangential forces to the head, causing linear and rotational head kinematics, respectively. Traditional expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam bicycle helmets are effective at preventing many head injuries, especially skull fractures and severe traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) (primarily from normal contact forces). However, the incidence of concussion from collisions (primarily from rotational head motion) remains high, indicating need for enhanced protection. An elastomeric honeycomb helmet design is proposed herein as an alternative to EPS foam to improve TBI protection and be potentially reusable for multiple impacts, and tested using a twin-wire drop tower. Small-scale normal and oblique impact tests showed honeycomb had lower oblique strength than EPS foam, beneficial for diffuse TBI protection by permitting greater shear deformation and had the potential to be reusable. Honeycomb helmets were developed based on the geometry of an existing EPS foam helmet, prototypes were three-dimensional-printed with thermoplastic polyurethane and full-scale flat and oblique drop tests were performed. In flat impacts, honeycomb helmets resulted in a 34% higher peak linear acceleration and 7% lower head injury criteria (HIC15) than EPS foam helmets. In oblique tests, honeycomb helmets resulted in a 30% lower HIC15 and 40% lower peak rotational acceleration compared to EPS foam helmets. This new helmet design has the potential to reduce the risk of TBI in a bicycle accident, and as such, reduce its social and economic burden. Also, the honeycomb design showed potential to be effective for repetitive impact events without the need for replacement, offering benefits to consumers.

Preliminary estimation of rock-fall lateral dispersion by laboratory test

Lateral dispersion significantly directs the assessment of rockfall hazard and design of countermeasures. In the present study, the dependence of lateral dispersion on different controlling factors has been systematically evaluated by performing laboratory tests using three different rock block types, namely circular block, and two types of elliptical block. The three types of rock block are released onto an inclined surface with the identical initial status. Parallel, anti-parallel, and oblique impact tests set at slope angles of 22.5° and 45°are conducted to study the block-slope interaction of rockfall. Lateral dispersion of rockfall is less influenced by the block shape for the oblique impact, while the post-impact behaviors are greatly affected by the block shape. The key factors influencing the deviation of the post-impact trajectory direction are the slope angle (θ) and direction difference (Δφ). An empirical model is then developed to characterize the deviation distribution of lateral dispersion by 5th and 95th percentile values with the inclusion of the two key factors. Linear function can be used to describe the 5th percentile boundary, while hyperbolic function is good for the 95th percentile boundary, which need to be validated by field tests in the subsequent research.

Radial and Oblique Impact Testing of Alpine Helmets onto Snow Surfaces

Recent studies have found that alpine helmets reduce the risk of focal injuries associated with radial impacts, which is likely due to current alpine helmet standards requiring helmets to be drop-tested on flat anvils with only linear acceleration pass criteria. There is a need to evaluate the performance of alpine helmets in more realistic impacts. The current study developed a method to assess the performance of alpine helmets for radial and oblique impacts on snow surfaces in a laboratory setting. Snow samples were collected from a groomed area of a ski slope. Radial impacts were performed as drop tests onto a stationary snow sample. Oblique impacts were performed as drop tests onto a snow sample moving horizontally. For radial impacts, snow sample collection time was found to significantly (p = 0.005) influence mean peak linear headform acceleration with an increase in ambient temperature softening the snow samples. For oblique tests, the recreational alpine sports helmet with a rotation-damping system (RDS) significantly (p = 0.002) reduced mean peak angular acceleration compared to the same helmets with no RDS by approximately 44%. The ski racing helmet also significantly (p = 0.006) reduced mean peak angular acceleration compared to the recreational alpine sports helmet with no RDS by approximately 33%, which was attributed to the smooth outer shell of the ski racing helmet. The current study helps to bridge the knowledge gap between real helmet impacts on alpine snow slopes and laboratory helmet impacts on rigid surfaces.

Mechanical characteristics of composite honeycomb sandwich structures under oblique impact

Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) and CFRP-based composite honeycomb sandwich structures are particularly sensitive to impact. The mechanical characteristics of composite honeycomb sandwich structures under oblique impact are studied by numerical simulation and experiment. The oblique impact model is established, and the reliability of the model is verified by the oblique impact test. To further analyze the influence of structural parameters on energy absorption under oblique impact, the influence of impact angle, face sheet thickness and wall thickness of the honeycomb is numerically studied. The results show that the impact angle has an important effect on energy distribution. The structural parameters also have an effect on the peak contact force, contact time, and energy absorption, and the effect is different from normal impact due to the presence of frictional dissipation energy. Compared with normal impact, the debonding of oblique impact will be reduced, but the buckling range of the honeycomb core will be expanded.

Development of modelling design tool for harpoon for active space debris removal

The level of debris in Earth orbit presents an increasing risk. Active debris removal, involving capture and deorbit of larger items, has been identified as important in controlling future debris population growth. One concept for capturing debris is a harpoon, with low post-penetration residual velocity being a key design requirement. Aluminium sandwich panels are common structural components on typical spacecraft and consequently a probable target structure. An ideal harpooning event is characterised with complete penetration of the sandwich panel and low harpoon residual (post penetration) velocity. This paper presents development of a numerical modelling tool for a harpoon design for active orbital debris removal. The ability to predict the ballistic limit of an aluminium sandwich panel with a honeycomb core representative of a large satellite structural element being the primary requirement for the modelling tool. The modelling approach was validated against the experimental results from normal and oblique impact tests performed for ogive and flat nose projectiles over a velocity range between 50 m/s to 120 m/s. The modelling was based on explicit finite element method, using the commercial LS-DYNA code. An element failure criterion was used to approximate material damage and failure. Sensitivity studies were performed to investigate the influence of model key features on the projectile exit velocity. The features with the strongest influence were the face sheet material model and the projectile-panel friction model. The projectile exist velocities observed in the experiments were used to select the final parameters used. The use of an element deletion criterion that incorporated the influence of stress triaxiality improved the agreement for the plate deformation behaviour between the numerical and experimental results. For the ogive nose projectile, the exit velocity agreed well with the experiments for the range of impact velocities and angles considered. For the flat nose projectile, the model overestimated the exit velocity. In the case of the normal impact this was due to the model's inability to capture the honeycomb crushing ahead of the projectile.

Experimental and numerical study on dynamic response of concrete filled steel tubular pile subjected to oblique impact

To study the dynamic performance of concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) piles under impact loads, the strain and displacement responses of the members were studied by oblique impact tests. Then the experimental process was simulated, and the simulation results are in good agreement with the test. Finally, parameter analysis based on numerical simulation is conducted to study the influence of the section stiffness and impact energy on the dynamic response of the members, as well as the energy absorption of the members are studied, and the response mode of the members is summarized. The results show that the response modes of CFST piles can be summarized as slight bruise at the impact point, dented damage at the impact point, bending deformation of the member, and failure of restrained end of the member. The displacement and energy absorption rate are sensitive to the variation of section stiffness, impact energy, impact height and angle. The impact force is sensitive to the change of section stiffness, impact energy and height, but not sensitive to the change of impact angle. The energy absorption rates are more than 50%, and the maximum energy dissipation rate reaches 91.3%.

Predicting the kinematic response of a helmeted headform during oblique impacts

A total of 160 oblique impact tests were performed to study the relationship between the kinematic response of a helmeted headform and the impact severity caused by a change in speed (Group 1) and anvil angle (Group 2). In this study, the kinematic response of a helmeted headform was evaluated by measuring its linear acceleration, rotational acceleration, and rotational velocity. In Group 1, a football helmet was tested at 45° anvil angle at four different impact speeds ranging from 4.5 to 7.4 m/s on five impact locations. The results showed that, for all cases, the relationship between the impact speed and helmeted headform kinematic response was linear, with an average R2 value of 0.98. At each impact location, a prediction line was generated using the data points for the lowest and highest speeds. For the speeds of 5.5 and 6.5 m/s, the prediction of the helmeted headform kinematic response was validated with an average error of 4.7%. In Group 2, the helmeted headform was tested at 5.5 m/s impact speed at six different anvil angles between 15° and 55°, and the response was fitted with a second-degree polynomial (curve) with an average R2 value of 0.96. The kinematic response of the higher and lower impact speeds was obtained experimentally for one angle, and the fitted curve for 5.5 m/s was offset to pass through the obtained kinematic response. The predicted helmeted headform kinematic response was experimentally validated, and the average error was found to be 8.3%. The results showed that it is possible to predict the kinematic response of a helmeted headform by interpolating or extrapolating the data without having to perform an additional impact test. An analysis of other research works also showed similar predictable behaviour for headform equipped with other helmet models. Therefore, the number of tests during the process of evaluating helmet performance can be reduced.

The Influence of Headform/Helmet Friction on Head Impact Biomechanics in Oblique Impacts at Different Tangential Velocities

Oblique impacts of the helmet against the ground are the most frequent scenarios in real-world motorcycle crashes. The combination of two factors that largely affect the results of oblique impact tests are discussed in this work. This study aims to quantify the effect of the friction at the interface between the headform and the interior of a motorcycle helmet at different magnitudes of tangential velocity. The helmeted headform, with low friction and high friction surface of the headform, was dropped against three oblique anvils at different impact velocities resulting in three different magnitudes of the tangential velocity (3.27 m/s, 5.66 m/s, 8.08 m/s) with the same normal component of the impact velocity (5.66 m/s). Three impact directions (front, left-side and right-side) and three repetitions per impact condition were tested resulting in 54 impacts. Tangential velocity variation showed little effect on the linear acceleration results. On the contrary, the rotational results showed that the effect of the headform’s surface depends on the magnitude of the tangential velocity and on the impact direction. These results indicate that a combination of low friction with low tangential velocities may result into underprediction of the rotational headform variables that would not be representative of real-world conditions.

A price-performance analysis of the protective capabilities of wholesale bicycle helmets

Objective Although bicycle helmets are an effective countermeasure against head injury, many cyclists do not wear one. One avenue for facilitating widespread helmet use is through community-driven helmet safety initiatives, which often give away or subsidize wholesale helmet models that are manufactured at a low price point. However, the impact performance of such helmets during real-world accident conditions has yet to be explored. The present study seeks to investigate trends between wholesale bicycle helmet price and protective capabilities. Methods Nine common wholesale helmet models (price range $3.65–$12.95) were evaluated according to the bicycle Summation of Tests for the Analysis of Risk (STAR) methodology, which analyzes helmet performance in 24 oblique impact tests reflecting common cyclist head impact conditions. Resulting head peak linear acceleration (PLA) and peak rotational velocity (PRV) were collected and used to predict risk of concussion. Concussion risks were then combined using the STAR algorithm in order to summarize each model’s risks into a single, weighted metric. Results Large ranges in kinematic results led to large variations in concussion risks between helmets, and in turn, large variations in STAR values (13.5–26.2). Wholesale helmet price was not significantly associated with STAR, although incorporating 30 previous bicycle helmet STAR results produced a weak negative correlation between price and STAR overall. Nonetheless, the best-performing wholesale helmet produced one of the lowest overall STAR values for a price of $6.45. Helmet style was instead a superior predictor of STAR, with multi-sport style helmets producing significantly higher linear accelerations and resulting STAR values than bike style helmets. Conclusions These results show that the impact performance of wholesale helmets ranges considerably despite their low price-points. Results can also guide helmet safety promotion organizers toward distributing wholesale bicycle helmet models associated with lower overall concussion risks.

A New Assessment of Bicycle Helmets: The Brain Injury Mitigation Effects of New Technologies in Oblique Impacts

New helmet technologies have been developed to improve the mitigation of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in bicycle accidents. However, their effectiveness under oblique impacts, which produce more strains in the brain in comparison with vertical impacts adopted by helmet standards, is still unclear. Here we used a new method to assess the brain injury prevention effects of 27 bicycle helmets in oblique impacts, including helmets fitted with a friction-reducing layer (MIPS), a shearing pad (SPIN), a wavy cellular liner (WaveCel), an airbag helmet (Hövding) and a number of conventional helmets. We tested whether helmets fitted with the new technologies can provide better brain protection than conventional helmets. Each helmeted headform was dropped onto a 45° inclined anvil at 6.3 m/s at three locations, with each impact location producing a dominant head rotation about one anatomical axes of the head. A detailed computational model of TBI was used to determine strain distribution across the brain and in key anatomical regions, the corpus callosum and sulci. Our results show that, in comparison with conventional helmets, the majority of helmets incorporating new technologies significantly reduced peak rotational acceleration and velocity and maximal strain in corpus callosum and sulci. Only one helmet with MIPS significantly increased strain in the corpus collosum. The helmets fitted with MIPS and WaveCel were more effective in reducing strain in impacts producing sagittal rotations and a helmet fitted with SPIN in coronal rotations. The airbag helmet was effective in reducing brain strain in all impacts, however, peak rotational velocity and brain strain heavily depended on the analysis time. These results suggest that incorporating different impact locations in future oblique impact test methods and designing helmet technologies for the mitigation of head rotation in different planes are key to reducing brain injuries in bicycle accidents.

Laboratory Reconstructions of Bicycle Helmet Damage: Investigation of Cyclist Head Impacts Using Oblique Impacts and Computed Tomography

Although head injuries are common in cycling, exact conditions associated with cyclist head impacts are difficult to determine. Previous studies have attempted to reverse engineer cyclist head impacts by reconstructing bicycle helmet residual damage, but they have been limited by simplified damage assessment and testing. The present study seeks to enhance knowledge of cyclist head impact conditions by reconstructing helmet damage using advanced impact testing and damage quantification techniques. Damage to 18 helmets from cyclists treated in emergency departments was quantified using computed tomography and reconstructed using oblique impacts. Damage metrics were related to normal and tangential velocities from impact tests as well as peak linear accelerations (PLA) and peak rotational velocities (PRV) using case-specific regression models. Models then allowed original impact conditions and kinematics to be estimated for each case. Helmets were most frequently damaged at the front and sides, often near the rim. Concussion was the most common, non-superficial head injury. Normal velocity and PLA distributions were similar to previous studies, with median values of 3.4 m/s and 102.5 g. Associated tangential velocity and PRV medians were 3.8 m/s and 22.3 rad/s. Results can inform future oblique impact testing conditions, enabling improved helmet evaluation and design.

The effect of surface roughness on oblique bicycle helmet impact tests

The friction between a helmet and impact surface affects the accelerations imparted to the head. The roughness of the impact surface is, therefore, a consideration when developing oblique impact standards. An 80-grit abrasive paper is commonly used in oblique impact tests to simulate a road surface, but has not been validated for bicycle impacts and may not accurately represent real road surfaces. In the following study, a helmeted NOCSAE headform with a Hybrid III neck was dropped onto a 45° anvil at 6.5 m/s using a twin wire guided drop tower. Helmeted drops were performed in two orientations (frontal and side) on road surfaces, roughened steel surfaces, 80-grit abrasive paper and a low friction surface. For each impact, measures of linear and rotational acceleration were obtained. These metrics were compared across impact orientations and surfaces to assess the influence of surface roughness on headform impact response. Frontal impacts were less sensitive to the impact surface roughness than side impacts across metrics. Among metrics, rotational acceleration showed the largest effect due to surface roughness. Compared to the road surface, peak rotational acceleration from impacts on the 80-grit surface were 6.5% less and 48% greater for frontal and side impacts, respectively. Based on consideration of the peak and cumulative impact measures, steel impact surfaces appear to better simulate road impact than the commonly used 80-grit abrasive paper.

Feasibility study of performing experimental modal analysis with oblique impact testing using various oblique impact directions

Oblique impact excitation has been introduced in Experimental Modal Analysis (EMA), with the great advantage of reducing the conventional EMA’s testing time by a factor of three. One major constraint of this technique is the investigation of the effect of various oblique impact directions towards its accuracy in determining the structural dynamic characteristic. This feasibility study is difficult to be achieved in practice, as it involves a lengthy amount of experimental works using various oblique impact directions. To solve this problem, a mathematical model has been developed to synthesize the FRF due to oblique impact (i.e. oblique FRF) in this study. The synthesized oblique FRFs show great agreement with the measured oblique FRFs in various oblique impact directions, which validate the reliability of the usage of the proposed synthesis method. The performance of the oblique impact testings using various impact angles is investigated. The results show that the oblique impact testing has a high success rate to extract directional modes in many impact directions, however wrong selection of the impact direction will lead to mode estimation failure. Good selection of impact direction based on force and modal strengths are demonstrated to ensure an accurate estimation of the structural dynamic characteristics.

Rib kinematics analysis in oblique and lateral impact tests

Understanding thorax kinematics and rib breaking mechanisms in conditions of oblique and lateral impact is crucial in safety systems development. To increase knowledge level on this subject, simulation and experimental tests are necessary. The purpose of this study was to obtain single rib kinematics in the case of oblique and lateral impact conditions using numerical simulation approach. Two impact tests using human body model of a 50th percentile man (THUMS v4.0.1 AM50) were performed in LS-Dyna R7.1.1. Impactor was a rigid cylinder with a diameter of 152 mm, and velocity equal to 6.7 m/s. Impact angle measured to sagittal plane was 30 and 90°, respectively in oblique and lateral impact case. Kinematics of ribs from 3rd to 6th were analyzed. Results shown significant similarities between oblique impact and kinematics of ribs tested in frontal impact conditions in the literature, with maximal costochondral joint displacement relatively to costovertebral joint varying from 65.4 mm (3rd rib) to 82.0 mm (5th rib). Deformation of rib in lateral impact conditions was different than during oblique impact test, with distinctive "flattening" approximately in the middle of the rib. Maximal relative displacement varies from 16.4 mm (6th rib) to 26.6 mm (5th rib) and its location depends on the analyzed rib. Oblique impact scenario may be simulated for the single rib on an experimental way using set-up of the frontal impact. Experimental simulation of the lateral impact for the single rib should not use the same set-up, as the kinematics analysis showed significant differences between simulated cases.

Development and validation of experimental modal analysis with fixture-free oblique impact testing based on a vector projection method

Experimental modal analysis (EMA) with oblique excitation (i.e. oblique impact testing) is useful in improving the long test time problem of conventional EMA with normal excitation (i.e. triaxial normal impact testing), in order to extract all the important dynamic characteristics of a 3D complex structure. In this study, a new methodology involving a vector projection method is introduced to find the driving point frequency response function (FRF) in the oblique direction, without the need for a special fixture with an obliquely oriented impedance head. Hence, this presents a low cost and practical solution for scaling the mode shape, as compared to the traditional approach. Moreover, the concurrent forces characteristic of oblique excitation are used in the development of the theoretical relationship between FRFs with oblique excitation and those with normal excitation. This is important for the validation of the oblique impact testing result, such as the FRF and modal parameter estimations. The experimental results show that oblique impact testing has reliable and effective results, as compared with the triaxial normal impact testing, in terms of the FRF correlation, natural frequency discrepancy, modal damping ratio error and modal assurance criterion of the unit modal mass mode shape.

THOR dummy chest deflection response in oblique and lateral far-side sled tests

Objective: The focus of this study is side impact. Though occupant injury assessment and protection in nearside impacts has received considerable attention and safety standards have been promulgated, field studies show that a majority of far-side occupant injuries are focused on the head and thorax. The 50th percentile male Test Device for Human Occupant Restraint (THOR) has been used in oblique and lateral far-side impact sled tests, and regional body accelerations and forces and moments recorded by load cells have been previously reported. The aim of this study is to evaluate the chestband-based deflection responses from these tests.Methods: The 3-point belt–restrained 50th percentile male THOR dummy was seated upright in a buck consisting of a rigid flat seat, simulated center console, dashboard, far-side side door structure, and armrest. It was designed to conduct pure lateral and oblique impacts. The center console, dashboard, simulated door structure, and armrest were covered with energy-absorbing materials. A center-mounted airbag was mounted to the right side of the seat. Two 59-gage chestbands were routed on the circumference of the thorax, with the upper and lower chestbands at the level of the third and sixth ribs, respectively, following the rib geometry. Oblique and pure lateral far-side impact tests with and without airbags were conducted at 8.3 m/s. Maximum chest deflections were computed by processing temporal contours using custom software and 3 methods: Procedures paralleling human cadaver studies, using the actual anchor point location and actual alignment of the InfraRed Telescoping Rods for the Assessment of Chest Compression (IR-TRACC) in the dummy on each aspect—that is, right or left,—and using the same anchor location of the internal sensor but determining the location of the peak chest deflection on the contour confined to the aspect of the sensor; these were termed the SD, ID, and TD metrics, respectively.Results: All deformation contours at the upper and lower thorax levels and associated peak deflections are given for all tests. Briefly, the ID metrics were the lowest in magnitude for both pure lateral and oblique modes, regardless of the presence or absence of an airbag. This was followed by the TD metric, and the SD metric produced the greatest deflections.Conclusion: The chestbands provide a unique opportunity to compute peak deflections that parallel current IR-TRACC-type deflections and allow computation of peak deflections independent of the initial point of attachment to the rib. The differing locations of the peak deflection vectors along the rib contours for different test conditions suggest that a priori attachment is less effective. Further, varying magnitudes of the differences between ID and TD metrics underscore the difficulty in extrapolating ID outputs under different conditions: Pure lateral versus oblique, airbag presence, and thoracic levels. Deflection measurements should, therefore, not be limited to an instrument that can only track from a fixed point. For improved predictions, these results suggest the need to investigate alternative techniques, such as optical methods to improve chest deflection measurements for far-side occupant injury assessment and mitigation.

A new method for the study of parabolic impact of foam-core sandwich panels

Lightweight sandwich panels with composite facesheets and foam core have high impact energy absorption capability and are widely employed in multifunctional applications such as aircraft and marine structures. The dynamic behaviour of sandwich panels is typically studied for impact loading at normal angle of incidence but the structures are more frequently loaded at some oblique angle or with a complex tri-dimensional trajectory in real engineering situations. The damage area and damage modes for these trajectories are significantly different and it is not sufficient to study only normal impacts. There are well established experimental protocols for normal or oblique impact tests using devices like the drop tower, but impacts with complex trajectory are difficult to characterise experimentally. In this paper, a Gough-Stewart platform with six degrees of freedom has been modified to develop an original tri-dimensional impact device called Hexapod. The trajectory is defined to an impactor attached to the seventh jack of the Hexapod to study the response of sandwich plates to impact loading with complex trajectories. The applicability of the newly developed device is demonstrated by studying parabolic impact with different trajectories on sandwich plates with Kevlar facesheets and Rohacell foam core. The time history of vertical and horizontal components of force is measured using tri-axial load cell and strain history is obtained from Digital Image Correlation of a high speed camera images. The results of the parabolic impact show the importance of shear behaviour of the foam in the progression of damage in the sandwich panels. Additionally, the response of the sandwich panels to parabolic impact was simulated numerically using explicit finite element code LS-DYNA. The results of the FE model are compared with experimental data in terms of the force history and strain contours.

Evaluation of a novel bicycle helmet concept in oblique impact testing

BackgroundA novel bicycle helmet concept has been developed to mitigate rotational head acceleration, which is a predominant mechanism of traumatic brain injury (TBI). This WAVECEL concept employs a collapsible cellular structure that is recessed within the helmet to provide a rotational suspension. This cellular concept differs from other bicycle helmet technologies for mitigation of rotational head acceleration, such as the commercially available Multi-Directional Impact Protection System (MIPS) technology which employs a slip liner to permit sliding between the helmet and the head during impact. This study quantified the efficacy of both, the WAVECEL cellular concept, and a MIPS helmet, in direct comparison to a traditional bicycle helmet made of rigid expanded polystyrene (EPS). MethodsThree bicycle helmet types were subjected to oblique impacts in guided vertical drop tests onto an angled anvil: traditional EPS helmets (CONTROL group); helmets with a MIPS slip liner (SLIP group); and helmets with a WAVECEL cellular structure (CELL group). Helmet performance was evaluated using 4.8 m/s impacts onto anvils angled at 30°, 45°, and 60° from the horizontal plane. In addition, helmet performance was tested at a faster speed of 6.2 m/s onto the 45° anvil. Five helmets were tested under each of the four impact conditions for each of the three groups, requiring a total of 60 helmets. Headform kinematics were acquired and used to calculate an injury risk criterion for Abbreviated Injury Score (AIS) 2 brain injury. ResultsLinear acceleration of the headform remained below 90 g and was not associated with the risk of skull fracture in any impact scenario and helmet type. Headform rotational acceleration in the CONTROL group was highest for 6.2 m/s impacts onto the 45° anvil (7.2 ± 0.6 krad/s2). In this impact scenario, SLIP helmets and CELL helmets reduced rotational acceleration by 22% (p = 0003) and 73% (p < 0.001), respectively, compared to CONTROL helmets. The CONTROL group had the highest AIS 2 brain injury risk of 59 ± 8% for 6.2 m/s impacts onto the 45° anvil. In this impact scenario, SLIP helmets and CELL helmets reduced the AIS 2 brain injury risk to 34.2% (p = 0.001) and 1.2% (p < 0.001), respectively, compared to CONTROL helmets. DiscussionResults of this study are limited to a narrow range of impact conditions, but demonstrated the potential that rotational acceleration and the associated brain injury risk can be significantly reduced by the cellular WAVECEL concept or a MIPS slip liner. Results obtained under specific impact angles and impact velocities indicated performance differences between these mechanisms. These differences emphasize the need for continued research and development efforts toward helmet technologies that further improve protection from brain injury over a wide range a realistic impact parameters.

Verification of the revision proposal for ISO11227 considering Ejecta oblique impact test and analysis

Verification of the revision proposal for ISO11227 considering Ejecta oblique impact test and analysis