EP0930832B1 - Protection de la tete et du corps d'un etre humain - Google Patents

Protection de la tete et du corps d'un etre humain Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0930832B1
EP0930832B1 EP97901721A EP97901721A EP0930832B1 EP 0930832 B1 EP0930832 B1 EP 0930832B1 EP 97901721 A EP97901721 A EP 97901721A EP 97901721 A EP97901721 A EP 97901721A EP 0930832 B1 EP0930832 B1 EP 0930832B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
layer
head
acoustic impedance
protection
polymeric material
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP97901721A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0930832A1 (fr
Inventor
Sandra Jane Bell
David John Townend
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Qinetiq Ltd
Original Assignee
Qinetiq Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Qinetiq Ltd filed Critical Qinetiq Ltd
Publication of EP0930832A1 publication Critical patent/EP0930832A1/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0930832B1 publication Critical patent/EP0930832B1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A41—WEARING APPAREL
    • A41D—OUTERWEAR; PROTECTIVE GARMENTS; ACCESSORIES
    • A41D31/00—Materials specially adapted for outerwear
    • A41D31/04—Materials specially adapted for outerwear characterised by special function or use
    • A41D31/28—Shock absorbing
    • A41D31/285—Shock absorbing using layered materials

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a material and methodology for the protection of the human head and body from soft tissue damage resulting from impulsive loading as a result of blunt object impacts.
  • a particular aspect of the invention relates to a material and methodology for the reduction of head injuries during boxing, and to headgear and boxing gloves employing such material.
  • a severe blow to the head will cause the skull to accelerate rapidly, inertial effect will cause the brain to strike the accelerating skull with possibility of local injury.
  • a blow to the head could result in a stress wave / pressure wave travelling through the brain. This wave would result in high, localised, shear stresses deep inside the brain leading to rupture of blood vessels.
  • a stress wave travelling through the brain will undergo multiple reflections at the rear brain/skull interface, interference between waves could result in localised tensile stresses. These tensile stresses could, if high enough, tear brain tissue apart resulting in severe damage at the rear of the brain, remote from the point of impact.
  • An impulsive shock is characterised by a broad continuous frequency spectrum and a further mode of damage may arise if specific frequencies cause the brain to resonate within the skull cavity leading to both localised and remote injuries.
  • a blow to the head could also result in tri-axial forces producing both translation and rotation and as a result differential movement between the brain and brain stem could occur.
  • a material for the protection of the human head or body from soft tissue damage caused by an impacting object comprises at least two layers of viscoelastic polymeric materials, including at least one first layer of a first viscoelastic polymeric material selected to be substantially matched in acoustic impedance to the impacting object and at least one second layer of a second viscoelastic polymeric material, positioned in use between the first layer and the head or body to be protected, selected to produce a large mismatch in acoustic impedance between the first layer(s) and the human head or body.
  • the mismatch provided by the second layer or layers will be at least about 2MRayls.
  • the purpose of the material is to act as an acoustic wave filter to control the magnitude and frequency content of the transmitted stress components, the mismatch need only reach this minimum within frequency bands which could be potentially injurious to the part of head or body under protection.
  • Stress wave coupling between the body and the impactor is found to be a significant cause of soft tissue injury following impact which cannot be attributed to gross displacement alone.
  • the coupling of energy between two media depends on the relative acoustic impedance between the two media.
  • the energy associated with an impact initially consists of translational kinetic energy. At the time of impact some of this kinetic energy will be converted to potential energy in the form of a pressure pulse resulting in a high amplitude non-linear acoustic wave entering the internal tissue of the brain or body cavity.
  • the invention seeks to control the magnitude and frequency content of this pressure wave by the use of materials functioning as acoustic wave filters.
  • the layered material in accordance with the invention so that it lies between the impactor and body, for example in the form of an article of protective clothing or headgear, can reduce the stress wave coupling.
  • the layer or layers of the second material providing the large acoustic impedance mismatch between the layer or layers of the first material and the head or body acoustically decouple(s) the impactor from the body and minimise damage resulting from stress wave coupling.
  • the layer or layers of the first material which are substantially matched in acoustic impedance to the impactor absorbs much of the kinetic energy of the impact converting it to potential energy thus maximising the energy absorption capability of the layered material as a whole. Materials are selected from known viscoelastic polymeric acoustic materials, and suitable selections will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.
  • the material may be arranged with the decoupling layer or layers outermost from the body and the absorbing layer or layers innermost and selected to be substantially matched in acoustic impedance to the body to maximise energy absorption.
  • the situation differs for blunt object impacts. Before impact a blunt projectile contains only translational kinetic energy. On impact some of this energy is converted to potential energy in the form of a pressure wave.
  • Some of the energy will remain as translational kinetic energy causing displacement of the head or body after impact, a particular problem for head impacts where the resultant rapid acceleration of the head can cause the components within the skull to be compacted against it allowing stress waves to be set up in the brain.
  • the impact energy is first coupled to the absorbing medium, so that the layer of viscoelastic polymeric material selected to be substantially matched in acoustic impedance to the impacting object will be the outermost from the head or body to be protected.
  • This layer ensures that most of the incident energy is transmitted to the absorbing material, thus serving to enhance the conversion of kinetic energy to potential energy and thereby reduce the rapid acceleration of the head.
  • the impedance mismatch between the outer layer and the head or body ensures that any energy not absorbed by the outer layer is decoupled at and largely reflected back from the material interfaces back into the outer layer for absorption via a second pass through that layer.
  • the invention is of particular applicability to the provision of protection for the human head.
  • Stress wave coupling to produce a pressure wave within the brain and the absorption of the resultant pressure wave energy within in the brain is a potentially significant source of damage and is likely to be exacerbated by multiple reflections at the internal brain/skull interface and the possibility of resonance effects, both of which are of particular potential significance given the properties of skull and brain tissue.
  • a particular embodiment of the invention comprises a protective helmet incorporating the protective layered material hereinbefore described. Examples of uses for the resultant lightweight helmet include automotive applications, cycling helmets, rugby scrum caps, and protective headgear for boxing and like weaponless combat based contact sports.
  • the protective material is conveniently applied to the head, it will be appreciated that in principle the protective material may be applied to the impactor and still produce the necessary decoupling on impact. A particular application of this arises in the field of boxing and similar weaponless combat based contact sports. In professional boxing, protective headgear is not used in competition.
  • the material according to the invention can in this case be used in an embodiment of the invention comprising a glove for use in combat based sports, for example a boxing glove, incorporating the protective material hereinbefore described. Similar principles could be applied to footwear in sports allowing foot/head contact and it is intended that "glove” is here read broadly to cover all such like protective covering.
  • a method of protection of the human head or body from soft tissue damage caused by an impacting object comprises interposing between the human head or body and an impacting object at least two layers of viscoelastic polymeric material, including at least one first layer of a first viscoelastic polymeric material selected to be substantially matched in acoustic impedance to the impacting object and at least one second layer of a second viscoelastic polymeric material positioned between the head or body and the layer or layers of the first material, selected to produce a large mismatch in acoustic impedance between the human head or body and the first layer.
  • the method of protection can be refined to maximise protection for a particular impact event by preceding with the method with the additional steps of analysing the damage profile for the particular impact event in the frequency domain, determining the particular stress wave frequency band producing maximum tissue damage, selecting the material for the at least one first layer of a first viscoelastic polymeric material to have a minimum mismatch in acoustic impedance the particular stress wave frequency band, and selecting the material for the at least one second layer of a second viscoelastic polymeric material to have a maximum mismatch in acoustic impedance with the impactor and the head or body at the particular stress wave frequency band.
  • the second layer is preferably configured to exhibit quarter wave resonance at the particular stress wave frequency band to further enhance its energy absorbing capabilities within that band.
  • Materials are selected from known acoustic materials having the desired dynamic properties. They will be polyurethane materials with additives, including fillers and possibly fibres, to optimise complex moduli, loss tangents, densities, and complex phase velocities. Suitable materials will be familiar to those skilled in the art.
  • the method is generally applicable to blunt object impacts, in which a significant injury mechanism arises from the direct coupling of the impact energy to the body.
  • the kinetic energy of the impactor is converted to potential energy and transmitted straight through to the vital organs. If the energy within the injurious frequency bands can be effectively decoupled from the body then the effects of the impact can be reduced. This is true in the case of a boxer hitting his opponent. If the energy carried by the punch can be decoupled and absorbed within the glove or protective headgear then the risk of serious injury can be reduced.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Textile Engineering (AREA)
  • Helmets And Other Head Coverings (AREA)
  • Finger-Pressure Massage (AREA)
  • Thermotherapy And Cooling Therapy Devices (AREA)
  • Cable Accessories (AREA)
  • Adjustment Of The Magnetic Head Position Track Following On Tapes (AREA)
  • Laser Beam Processing (AREA)
  • Professional, Industrial, Or Sporting Protective Garments (AREA)
  • Gloves (AREA)

Claims (9)

  1. Matériau destiné à la protection de la tête ou du corps humain vis-à-vis d'une détérioration des tissus mous provoquée par un objet venant frapper comportant au moins deux couches de matériau polymère viscoélastique, incluant au moins une première couche d'un premier matériau polymère viscoélastique sélectionné pour être pratiquement apparié au niveau impédance acoustique à l'objet venant frapper et au moins une seconde couche d'un second matériau polymère viscoélastique, caractérisé en ce que la couche ou les couches du second matériau sont positionnées entre le premier matériau et la tête ou le corps, et sont sélectionnées pour produire une grande différence d'impédance acoustique entre la première couche et la tête ou le corps humain.
  2. Matériau pour la protection de la tête ou du corps humain vis-à-vis d'une détérioration des tissus mous provoquée par un objet venant frapper selon la revendication 1, caractérisé en ce que la grande différence d'impédance acoustique fournie par la seconde couche est d'au moins 2 Mohm acoustique par unité de surface (2Mrayls).
  3. Article de vêtement protecteur constitué du matériau selon la revendication 1 ou 2.
  4. Casque de protection constitué du matériau selon la revendication 1 ou 2.
  5. Serre-tête de protection destiné à être utilisé dans des sports à base de combat, constitué du matériau selon la revendication 1 ou 2.
  6. Gant destiné à être utilisé dans des sports à base de combat, constitué du matériau selon la revendication 1 ou 2.
  7. Procédé de protection de la tête ou du corps humain vis-à-vis d'une détérioration des tissus mous provoquée par un objet venant frapper comportant l'interposition entre la tête et le corps humain et un objet venant frapper d'au moins deux couches d'un matériau polymère viscoélastique, incluant au moins une première couche d'un premier matériau polymère viscoélastique sélectionné pour être pratiquement apparié au niveau impédance acoustique à l'objet venant frapper et au moins une seconde couche d'un second matériau polymère viscoélastique, positionnée entre le premier matériau et le corps ou la tête, sélectionnée pour produire une grande différence d'impédance acoustique entre la tête ou le corps humain et la première couche.
  8. Procédé de protection selon la revendication 7 précédé par les étapes consistant à analyser le profil de détérioration pour l'événement d'impact particulier dans le domaine de la fréquence, déterminer la bande de fréquence de l'onde de contrainte particulière produisant une détérioration maximum des tissus, sélectionner le matériau pour que la au moins une première couche de matériau polymère viscoélastique ait une différence minimum d'impédance acoustique au niveau de la bande de fréquence d'onde de contrainte particulière, et sélectionner le matériau de la au moins une seconde couche de matériau polymère viscoélastique pour qu'elle ait une différence maximum d'impédance acoustique au niveau de la bande de fréquence d'onde de contrainte particulière.
  9. Procédé de protection selon la revendication 8, dans lequel la seconde couche est configurée pour présenter une résonance au quart de la longueur d'onde au niveau de la bande de fréquence d'onde de contrainte particulière.
EP97901721A 1996-01-31 1997-01-30 Protection de la tete et du corps d'un etre humain Expired - Lifetime EP0930832B1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB9601905.4A GB9601905D0 (en) 1996-01-31 1996-01-31 Protection of human head and body
GB9601905 1996-01-31
PCT/GB1997/000263 WO1997027770A1 (fr) 1996-01-31 1997-01-30 Protection de la tete et du corps d'un etre humain

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0930832A1 EP0930832A1 (fr) 1999-07-28
EP0930832B1 true EP0930832B1 (fr) 2002-06-12

Family

ID=10787848

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP97901721A Expired - Lifetime EP0930832B1 (fr) 1996-01-31 1997-01-30 Protection de la tete et du corps d'un etre humain

Country Status (8)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0930832B1 (fr)
AT (1) ATE218819T1 (fr)
AU (1) AU1552997A (fr)
CA (1) CA2242921A1 (fr)
CZ (1) CZ234798A3 (fr)
DE (1) DE69713355T2 (fr)
GB (1) GB9601905D0 (fr)
WO (1) WO1997027770A1 (fr)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
USD708395S1 (en) 2013-08-23 2014-07-01 Joey LaRocque Protective helmet
USD774257S1 (en) 2015-02-11 2016-12-13 Joey LaRocque Helmet

Families Citing this family (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1437211B1 (fr) 1998-12-10 2013-04-24 Trisa Holding AG Procédé pour produire une brosse à dents
CA2396964C (fr) 1999-08-25 2008-02-12 Ergodyne Corporation Dispositif anti-vibrations et son procede de fabrication
AU7079600A (en) * 1999-08-25 2001-03-19 Ergodyne Corporation Vibration damping member and method of making same
ATE437623T1 (de) 2002-06-17 2009-08-15 Hill Rom Services Inc Vorrichtung zum hochziehen von patienten in einem bett
US7290299B2 (en) 2004-01-09 2007-11-06 Votel Thomas W Device and method for positioning patients
US11154108B2 (en) 2015-02-25 2021-10-26 Joey LaRocque Vented soft-sided helmet
EP3517883B1 (fr) * 2015-06-17 2022-04-20 The Regents of The University of Michigan Méthode d'atténuation de souffle

Family Cites Families (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2249942B (en) * 1990-11-23 1994-09-28 Ava Protective articles for personal wear
EP0564249A1 (fr) * 1992-03-30 1993-10-06 Sports Protection Limited Structure stratifiée résistant aux chocs et absorbant les chocs
US5537687A (en) * 1993-10-15 1996-07-23 Garza; Jaime Protective face mask system using varying thicknesses of energy absorption & dissipation material
US5673437A (en) * 1995-05-08 1997-10-07 Chase Ergonomics Inc. Vibration attenuating member and method of making same

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
USD708395S1 (en) 2013-08-23 2014-07-01 Joey LaRocque Protective helmet
USRE46249E1 (en) 2013-08-23 2016-12-27 Joey LaRocque Protective helmet
USD774257S1 (en) 2015-02-11 2016-12-13 Joey LaRocque Helmet

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CZ234798A3 (cs) 1998-10-14
EP0930832A1 (fr) 1999-07-28
DE69713355T2 (de) 2003-03-20
DE69713355D1 (de) 2002-07-18
WO1997027770A1 (fr) 1997-08-07
GB9601905D0 (en) 1996-04-03
AU1552997A (en) 1997-08-22
CA2242921A1 (fr) 1997-08-07
ATE218819T1 (de) 2002-06-15

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