Device to prevent brain damage from a severe impact to an athlete's head

Abstract

A safety helmet system to minimize brain concussions for athletes experiencing impact loading. A housing incorporates a series of displaceable plates which are displaceable having a shear thickening fluid between the displaceable plates for rigidifying upon impact. The housing is connected on one end to a helmet and to shoulder pads on an opposing end.

Description

FIELD OF USE[0001]This invention is in the field of devices that are designed to prevent concussions of the brain that frequently occur from blows to the head in certain sports such as football, lacrosse, field hockey, etc.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]There are an estimated 1.6 to 3.6 million sport's related concussions occurring annually just in the USA (J A Langlois, W Rutland Brown, M M Wald. (2006) The epidemiology and impact of traumatic brain injury: a brief overview. J Head Trauma Rehabil., 21(5):375-8). In addition to the professional sports, a greater percentage of these injuries occur in children, high school and college athletes who are also susceptible to severe negative effects of sport related concussions with a potentially greater negative impact on long-term quality of life.[0003]The kinematics that induce a concussion are thought to consist primarily of rotational acceleration-deceleration motions of the head. While existing protective helmets are effective at r...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]The present invention is a “SuperSpine” device that acts as a damping means for connecting helmet and shoulders (or torso) to decrease the effective angular acceleration of the head under concussive impact loading while presenting minimal impediment to the normal motion of the head (degrees of freedom, range of motion, force required to move at typical rates). The device is closely conformal to the body to present minimal obstruction. The fundamental premise of this device is to provide a nearly rigid connection between the head and torso (via the shoulder pads) under impact conditions, such that the impact load is transferred to the body, and hence greatly reduces the angular acceleration of the head relative to the body. The key component for the functioning of the device is the use of a “smart fluid” to act as a damping material with the special properties that its resistance to shearing motion is increased in a non-linear manner in relation to applied shear rates. This can be achieved through use of a passive shear-thickening (ST) suspension, or through implementation of active systems using magnetorheological (MR) fluids and appropriate sensor and control electronics. The present invention focuses on the use of shear-thickening fluids, which are passive materials that show a sudden solidification upon externally applied stress and quick refluidization after the removal of that stress. Although shear-thickening fluids have been incorporated into protective padding (closed-cell foams or honeycomb structures), utilizing them in a multi-degree-of-freedom damper to prevent brain concussion for football players is truly a novel implementation of this technology.

Problems solved by technology

Most existing literature has focused on the periodic or quasi-steady response of such fluids and appropriate models and data available for impulsive conditions is limited or does not yet exist.

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