Source: scitechdaily.com | Repost Duerson Fund 8/7/2023 –
A helmet equipped with liquid shock absorbers could potentially diminish the risk of traumatic brain injuries in contact sports.
In the United States, sports activities lead to millions of concussions annually. Athletes involved in sports such as American football are especially prone to injuries that can potentially result in severe long-term effects.
In response to this issue, researchers at Stanford University, in collaboration with Savior Brain, have created a potential safeguard: a helmet equipped with liquid shock absorbers. This innovative design could reduce the impact of blows to the head by a third.
“Most of the members of our team have a personal connection to traumatic brain injury and we care deeply about ensuring long-term athlete brain health,” said Nicholas Cecchi, a PhD candidate at Stanford University and lead author of the study in Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology. “Concussion and repeated head impacts are still a major problem in contact sports, and we believe that improved helmet technology can play an important role in reducing the risk of brain injury.”
HARM reduction
Previous research by the Camarillo Lab at Stanford University had suggested that liquid shock absorbers could provide improved protection in sports helmets. To investigate this, the team built a finite element model, used by engineers to simulate performance before manufacturing, of an American football helmet incorporating 21 liquid shock absorbers.