Impact Energy Redirecting Chest Protector for Commotio Cordis Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current chest protective equipment fails to prevent commotio cordis, a condition caused by blows to the torso near the heart, as they dissipate impact energy over a larger area rather than diverting it away from the heart, leading to potential severe injury or death in young athletes.
Innovation Solution
A protective device with a frame and tensioned members that reflect, deflect, or divert impact energy away from the cardiac silhouette, using a configuration with a first and second portion spaced apart to create an empty volume, ensuring the impact force is absorbed outside the protected area, thereby preventing energy transfer to the heart.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stress or pressure
If chest protectors use compliant foam or bead layers to dissipate impact energy over a larger area, then the energy distribution is improved, but the protection effectiveness against commotio cordis deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of dissipating impact energy through compliant foam or bead layers as conventional protectors do, this invention inverts the approach by using a rigid frame structure that reflects and redirects impact energy away from the heart. The rigid frame with tensioned members creates a mechanical system that reverses the direction of force vectors, preventing energy transfer to the cardiac silhouette rather than spreading it out.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the key parameter from energy dissipation (compliant materials) to energy redirection (rigid structure). By transitioning from soft, deformable materials to a rigid frame with specific geometric configuration, the system alters how impact energy is handled—transforming it from a dissipative process to a reflective/redirective process that protects the heart.
2Reliability
If a rigid frame structure is used to redirect impact energy, then the protection against commotio cordis is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The protective device is segmented into distinct functional components: a rigid frame structure and tensioned members. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function—the frame provides structural support and redirection geometry, while the tensioned members provide the reflective surface—and simplifies the overall design by dividing the protection mechanism into manageable, well-defined parts.
Solution Approach 2:
The tensioned members act as intermediaries between the external impact force and the rigid frame structure. They transfer and redirect the impact energy along predetermined paths, mediating the interaction between the projectile and the wearer's body. This intermediary mechanism simplifies the overall system by creating a clear force transmission pathway.
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 device effectively reduces or eliminates instances of commotio cordis by redirecting impact energy away from the heart, providing enhanced protection against traumatic chest and bodily injuries.
Implementation Method 1
a resilient layer formed by one or more resilient members 40 that are deformable into an empty volume 60 located between the first portion and the second portion
Data Source
AI summary
A protective device and methods for protecting a selected portion of a mammal's body from an impact is disclosed. In some embodiments, the protective device is placed adjacent to or in close proximity to the selected portion of the mammal's body, and the protective device acts to reflect, deflect, and/or otherwise divert impact energy that has been transferred to the protective device to areas of the mammal's body that are not within the selected portion thereof.