Mitigating Concussion: An Innovative Football Helmet

Helmets are the primary safety devices for various sports, including football. A well-designed helmet is generally believed to be effective protection against head injuries and concussions. However, there are a multitude of cases where the helmet has failed in protecting the player, resulting in head injuries. These injuries include massive trauma to the brain resulting in coma, paralysis or even death. Therefore, there is the need for a more effective football helmet.The helmet material that acts as an energy absorber is the most important parameter in helmet design. The main objective of this study is to investigate the impact response and energy absorption capability of different shock absorbing materials, in order to find an alternative safer and more effective design. The resulting design is expected to be more effective in the reducing impact force and decreased related head injuries.To this end, various types of head injuries and their main causes have been reviewed. Theoretical and experimental techniques are used to compare the efficiency of different energy absorbing materials including the foam paddings (used in current helmets). Additionally, alternative designs are proposed. A new padding structure has beenivdeveloped and tested in a football helmet. The impact performance of an off the shelf helmet is compared to the proposed design. Drop tests based on the NOCSAE standard were performed. Results of these tests show the effectiveness of the designed padding in reducing the possibility for head injuries.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Mechanical Engineering

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Toledo

Year dc:date

2012

Author dc:creator

• Izadi, Ehsan

Contributors dc:contributor

• Elahinia, Mohammad
• White, Phillip

• Mechanical Engineering
• football helmet
• mitigating concussion

Statement dc:rights

• unrestricted
• This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1344979274

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:toledo1344979274