Football Helmet Prototyping for Player-Group Fit and Impact Testing

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional protective sports helmets lack components specifically designed for individual player groups with distinct physical attributes, playing styles, and experiences, necessitating a need for helmets tailored using advanced structures, chemicals, and manufacturing techniques.

Innovation Solution

A multi-step method involving data collection, advanced mathematical techniques, and additive manufacturing to create personalized helmet prototypes, tested against unique standards, ensuring optimal fit and impact attenuation for specific player groups.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If conventional protective sports helmets are used, then general protection is provided, but they lack components specifically designed for individual player groups with distinct physical attributes, playing styles, and experiences

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveadaptability to individual player groupsVSAvoidhelmet design complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The helmet design is segmented into multiple customizable components including shell geometry, energy attenuation assembly configurations, and padding variations. Each component can be independently optimized for specific player groups based on data-driven design parameters, allowing tailored protection without redesigning the entire helmet system.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The helmet incorporates locally optimized energy attenuation assemblies with varying densities and configurations in different regions of the helmet. This allows specific areas to be customized for different impact risks associated with various player positions and playing styles, providing localized adaptation to individual player group needs.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Manufacturing precision

If advanced mathematical techniques and additive manufacturing are used to create personalized helmet prototypes, then optimal fit and impact attenuation are achieved for specific player groups, but manufacturing complexity and time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvehelmet fit precisionVSAvoidmanufacturing time

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

Player head geometry data and impact characteristics are collected and analyzed in advance using mathematical modeling techniques. This preliminary data gathering and computational design allows the additive manufacturing process to directly produce optimized helmet prototypes without requiring iterative manual adjustments, significantly reducing overall development time.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates accurate digital copies of player head geometries through scanning and mathematical modeling. These digital models are then used to generate customized helmet designs through computational algorithms before physical production, enabling precise fit optimization while minimizing physical prototyping iterations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Reliability

If helmets are tailored using advanced structures, chemicals, and manufacturing techniques, then protection and comfort are enhanced for individual player groups, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprotection performanceVSAvoidmanufacturing simplicity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The helmet utilizes composite material structures combining different foam densities, shell materials, and bonding agents in strategically configured energy attenuation assemblies. These composite constructions provide enhanced protection performance for specific player groups while leveraging additive manufacturing capabilities to simplify the integration of multiple materials into a single production process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #40Composite materials

Data Source

PatentUS12478126B2System and method for testing a football helmet

Publication Date: 2025.11.25 RIDDELL INC

AI summary

The invention relates to a protective sports helmet purposely designed for a selected group of helmet wearers from amongst a larger population of helmet wearers. A multi-step method for helmet design starts by collecting information from a population of players that may include information about the shape of a player's head and the impacts the player has sustained. This information is then processed to create player population information that is sorted to create categories. Advanced mathematical techniques are utilized to further sort these categories into player groups or data sets based on player attributes. Once the player groups are identified, another multi-step process is utilized to design optimized helmet prototype models for each player group. These optimized helmet prototype models are then further processed into complete helmet models by determining a structural design and chemical composition that is manufacturable and has mechanical properties that are substantially similar to the optimized helmet prototype model. Physical helmet prototypes are then created and tested using a unique helmet standard derived from information associated with each player group. Once the prototypes pass testing, the complete helmet models can be manufactured to create actual stock helmets or stock helmet components for future players whose characteristics and attributes place them within the selected player group.