Helmet Fluid Bladder Reinflation for Impact Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current helmets used in contact sports, such as football, do not effectively manage impact forces, leading to increased risks of traumatic brain injuries and degenerative conditions like chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), as they lack a system to automatically reinflate fluid bladders after impact, leaving players vulnerable to subsequent impacts.
Innovation Solution
A protective helmet system featuring fluid bladders that absorb energy through sensors and valves, with open or closed systems for reinflation, using pumps or reservoirs to restore pressure after an impact, ensuring continuous protection by redistributing impact forces across multiple bladders and maintaining minimum pressure to prevent direct impacts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If fluid bladders are used to absorb impact forces, then protection against traumatic brain injuries is improved, but the helmet requires manual intervention to reset after each impact which interrupts gameplay
Solution Approach 1:
The helmet system automatically detects impacts through sensors and triggers the deflation of fluid bladders without player intervention. After impact, the system self-resets by allowing bladders to reinflate naturally or through automated mechanisms, enabling continuous protection during gameplay without requiring players to manually reset the helmet after each hit.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical resetting with an automated sensor-based system. Accelerometers and pressure sensors detect impact forces and automatically control valve activation to deflate bladders. The system substitutes human intervention with electronic sensing and automated fluid control mechanisms.
2Force
If relief valves are used to evacuate bladder contents during impact, then impact absorption is improved, but there is no system for post-impact reinflation leaving players vulnerable to subsequent impacts
Solution Approach 1:
The helmet system ensures continuous protection by implementing automated reinflation mechanisms. After sensors detect impact and bladders deflate to absorb the force, the system automatically begins reinflating the bladders through pumps or by controlling check valves that allow fluid return. This continuous cycle of deflation and reinflation maintains protective capability across multiple impacts without leaving gaps in coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses sensors to continuously monitor bladder pressure and impact forces. When pressure drops below a threshold after impact, the feedback signal triggers automated reinflation mechanisms. This closed-loop control ensures bladders are maintained at optimal pressure levels for protection, automatically responding to the state of the system after each impact event.
3Reliability
If pre-filled fluid bladders are used for impact absorption, then protection effectiveness is improved, but players must return to the sideline after each impact triggering fluid release
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs periodic deflation and reinflation cycles of the fluid bladders based on impact detection. Rather than requiring complete emptying and manual resetting, the bladders undergo automated periodic cycles where they deflate during impact to absorb energy, then automatically reinflate to prepare for the next impact, maintaining continuous protective function throughout the game.
Solution Approach 2:
The helmet system recovers and reuses the attenuating fluid within the bladders after impact. Instead of discarding the fluid or requiring complete bladder replacement, check valves and pump systems capture and return the fluid to the bladders after they have served their protective function, enabling repeated use without loss of protective capability or gameplay interruption.
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 system reduces the effects of impact forces by automatically reinflating bladders, providing enhanced protection against both concussive and sub-concussive events, thereby minimizing the risk of brain injuries and contributing to player safety by maintaining optimal pressure levels.
Implementation Method 1
a protective helmet that provides better protection to reduce impact forces sustained by helmet wearers
Implementation Method 2
fluid bladders or reservoirs that absorb energy from an impact
Implementation Method 3
An accelerometer on each cell may detect an impact and a microcontroller opens an exhaust valve on the cell
Implementation Method 4
a system for reinflating the bladders after the impact... Re-inflation of the bladders can be controlled after a predetermined amount of time elapses after the initial impact or once key pressure readings within the bladders rise or fall below a predetermined threshold pressure
Data Source
AI summary
A protective helmet includes a plurality of fluid filled bladders, impact sensors, valves, and pumps wherein the helmet absorbs energy from an impact to protect a person wearing the helmet from traumatic brain injury. The bladders expel fluid in response to a triggering event such as energy from an impact detected as a pressure spike event and/or detected as an acceleration event. A selected bladder may expel fluid to other bladders, to a reservoir, to the environment outside of the protective helmet, or combinations thereof. In embodiments where the bladders need additional fluid after an impact, one or more pumps may refill selected deflated bladders. When a bladder is underinflated, an indicator light may emit light on an outer surface of the protective helmet to warn that the bladder is not yet ready to be placed in operation to absorb another impact.