Halo Ring Impact Cage Helmet Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current helmets are ineffective in absorbing rotational impacts, which are a major cause of concussions in contact sports, and often cause abrasions due to their design features such as external hardware and close-fitting padding that can increase rotational force on the head.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight helmet design featuring an internal impact cage constructed from elliptically shaped halo rings and U-shaped bars, covered with shock-absorbing materials, which disperses and dissipates external impacts, reducing the risk of injury by distributing forces and eliminating the need for external hardware like screws or brackets.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If current helmets use close-fitting shock absorbing padding to protect against linear impacts, then linear impact protection is improved, but rotational impact protection deteriorates because the padding causes the head to rotate with the helmet during angular impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary layer between the helmet shell and the player's head - a rotational friction reduction layer with low coefficient of friction. This intermediary prevents the padding from gripping the helmet shell during rotational impacts, allowing the helmet to rotate independently while the head remains relatively stable, thus resolving the contradiction between linear impact protection and rotational impact protection
2Reliability
If helmets include external hardware such as snaps and brackets for securing chin straps and facemasks, then helmet security is improved, but abrasion risk deteriorates due to points of contact that may cause injuries
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes external hardware components (snaps, brackets, screws) from the helmet exterior and relocates attachment mechanisms to the interior. Chin straps and facemasks are secured from inside the helmet using internal attachment points, eliminating protruding external hardware that could cause abrasions or lacerations during contact, while maintaining secure attachment functionality
3Strength
If helmets use heavy padding to absorb impact forces, then impact absorption is improved, but helmet weight deteriorates which may affect player comfort and performance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite material structures combining multiple layers with different properties: a hard outer shell for structural integrity, a rotational friction reduction layer for minimizing rotational force transfer, and shock absorbing padding materials (such as foam or air cells) for impact energy absorption. This composite approach achieves effective impact protection while managing overall weight through optimized material selection and layer thickness
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The helmet effectively reduces the risk of head injuries by absorbing and distributing impact forces, minimizing torque on the head and eliminating potential abrasions from external hardware, thereby enhancing safety and comfort for athletes.
Implementation Method 1
covered with shock-absorbing materials, which disperses and dissipates external impacts
Implementation Method 2
absorbing and distributing impact forces, minimizing torque on the head
Data Source
AI summary
The present helmet invention combines lightweight, impact absorption materials, force distribution structures, and means for affixing a facemask and straps to the helmet for reducing the risk of head injury. The internal construction of the helmet uses the combination of three or more elliptically shaped rings, each referred to as a “halo ring.” The halo rings are rigidly affixed to u-shaped torsion bars, and together form a cage. The cage covers areas of the head and skull vulnerable to injury, operating to disperse and thereby dissipate external impacts at any point where forces on the helmet's external surface are transferred to the ovoid-like cage.