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Paper on technology of football helmets
Paper on technology of football helmets
Football helmet research paper
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In American football, helmets are required to decrease traumatic brain injuries and have been successful in doing so. A large part in the success of helmet design is improvements in technology. The sizes of athletes have gone up to make football more dangerous. To protect against brain injury, helmets designs have changed to become heavier and wider, filled within the space are energy absorbing materials, air space and padding to protect the skull upon impact. Originally, helmets were designed to prevent only traumatic brain injuries, but technology is advancing to fill the gap of concussions. Until recently, the seriousness of concussions were not considered part of the equation that needed to be addressed, so manufactures did not utilized in constructing helmets to address this issue (Post et al. 653). Upon predicting risk of concussions in tests, by themselves linear and rotational acceleration are not suitable measurements for modern helmets. These testing measurements do not address the rotational forces and minor hits to the brain which are associated with concussions (Post et al. 654). Given the seriousness of concussions in contact sports, more attention is given to prevent and reduce concussions through testing methods and advancing technology, stronger regulation and changes to the sport. As stated in the article involving the National Football League (NFL), “The risk involved in playing sports are also very real. The NFL is struggling with serious mental and physical health problems because they sustained repeated mild traumatic brain injuries, is what concussions are called. (“Concussions and Marketing of Sports Equipment” 6).
In addition, future innovations and designs are on the way to further reduce head impact res...
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..., and Stefan M. Duma. "Development of the STAR Evaluation System for Football Helmets: Integrating Player Head Impact Exposure and Risk of Concussion." Annals of Biomedical Engineering 39.8 (2011): 2130-140. Print.
Rowson, Steven, Gunnar Brolinson, Mike Goforth, Dave Dietter, and Stefan Duma. "Linear and
Angular Head Acceleration Measurements in Collegiate Football." Journal of Biomechanical
Engineering 131.6 (2009): 061016. Print.
Viano, David C., and David Halstead. "Change in Size and Impact Performance of Football Helmets from the 1970s to 2010." Annals of Biomedical Engineering 40.1 (2012): 175-84. Print.
Viano, David C., Chris Withnall, and David Halstead. "Impact Performance of Modern Football
Helmets." Annals of Biomedical Engineering 40.1 (2012): 160-74. Print.
Walter, Kevin. "No Evidence That Helmet Add-ons Reduce Concussion Risk." AAP News 2013: 1-3.Print
The average NFL player takes up to 1,000 blows to the head throughout their football career. Some of those blows can have the force of a sledgehammer (“RealNatural”). Based on a research study by Dr. Jesse David, there were 265 concussions reported in the 2012 season, during the 2011 season there were 266 concussions, and 270 concussions in 2010 season (Kacsmar). It has been known that repeated blows to the head can cause long-term brain damage since at least the 1950’s, long before most of the NFL players had begun their careers (“RealNatural”). Past infractions of the NFL have already resulted in over 4,500 forme...
Wearing headgear has many positives, reducing injuries is the most obvious one and it could be argued that its help reduces the chance of injuries and even death. At an elite level, Chelsea goalkeeper, Petr Cech is convinced that wearing headgear saved him from suffering extended injuries after colliding with Fulham striker Orlando Sa back in September 2011. Headgear offers a form of padding when worn. It allows juniors and elite athlete’s the reduced chance of head wounds. By this it means it allows for less “cracked skulls”, scars, wounds and so on. It gives a stronger protection on the softer part of the skull which is more prone to damage...
For the safety of the players in the present and future, a stricter concussion protocol should be required at all levels of football. Though improvements have been made, the game of football is constantly changing and the protocol needs to keep up with the changes. Today’s athletes are bigger, stronger, and faster than ever before: "Size and physical conditioning techniques in sports at all levels have evolved to create an intense athlete. They 're able to create more force, power and speed than ever before and that leads to harder hits and a greater number of hits" (Neporent). These advances in training have led to a more dangerous sport. The protocol has improved in recent years along with an emphasis on player safety, but the increasing numbers of players with long-term effects of concussions show there is still work to be done.
Viano, David C., and David Halstead. "Change in Size and Impact Performance of Football Helmets
Mihoces, Gary. “More padding the issue of concussions and better helmets.” USA Today Sports. 23 August 2013. Web. 29 November 2013.
Bicycle helmets are a form of passive protection and have been proven to reduce both severity and incidence of bicyclist head injuries. Countless studies have proven the effectiveness of helmets to reduce the severity of a head injury [14], with the probability of fatal injury occurrence also greatly decreased [3]. Tests revealed that the helmet reduced the resultant peak of acceleration by 29% when compared to the unprotected form [13]. Despite these findings only a minor proportion (4%) of bicycle crash victims wore helmets at the time of incident [14]. Another study reported that 94% of cyclists involved in an accident did not wear a helmet [3]. At least 50% of the cyclist with recorded head injuries scored of 3 or 4 on the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) did not wear a helmet at the time of accident [13]. Interestingly pedal cyclists suffered more frequent head injuries than those riding a
Football is one sport that has scientists working around the clock on finding the perfect solution to help decrease concussions. Scientist, Vincent Farrara, created the Xenith X1 Helmet in 2004. Ferrara used to be a quarterback for Harv...
("N.F.L. Players’ Union Weighs the Benefits and the Pitfalls of Helmet Sensors. This technology helps prevent a player with a concussion that he doesn’t know about from continuing to play during that game and cause more damage to his head that can last forever. Another good advancement is helmets that have a design that uses energy-managing materials and a facemask attachment system that disperses energy from frontal impacts. This helps prevent the head from taking the main part of the blow and disperses the energy to lessen the likelihood of becoming seriously injured from a hit. These types of helmets have a certain shelf life meaning you can only use them for so many years before they have to be replaced, this is beneficial so that the equipment stays up to the new standards of safety for the players as well as prevents them from becoming stressed over the years and breaking.
Concussions have become arguably the #1 most prevalent issue in football today. The number of concussions throughout football has been rising for the past 20-30 years and there seems no way of stopping them. However, the NFL and many private researchers are set on finding a way to conquer this issue. They want to stop these concussions from happening and prevent the diseases resulting from them that have ruined so many football families’ lives. In order to solve this problem, I think that these researchers need to combine all of their knowledge to solve an issue that so many want solved. As soon as we conquer this “illness” we can return to enjoying the game that we love.
Football is America’s favorite sport. It is a fast-paced, hard-hitting game. Every week thousands of men and boys all across the country take part in football and every week these men and boys receive violent hits during the game. Frequently, as a result of these violent hits, the player receives a concussion. However, the long-term effects of concussions on players are not fully understood. New research shows that even a slight concussion in a football game can have lasting effects on a player. As a result of this research, children under the age of fourteen should not play tackle football.
Recreational athletes, competitive athletes, high school athletes, college athletes, and professional athletes all have one thing in common: the risk of a concussion. It's impossible to go a season without one athlete from a team receiving a concussion. The more that these concussions are studied, the more we learn about them, such as their detrimental effects on athletes. Because of the risk of health issues and death that come with concussions, doctors, coaches, athletic trainers, and lawmakers are stepping in to protect athletes of all levels from receiving concussions. Concussions occur time after time throughout different sporting events and many are familiar with the word concussion, but what really is a concussion?
Helmets drastically reduce the tremendous number of deaths caused by head injuries as well as reducing the severity of any ...
Football is one of the most popular sports in the world. It is played in a lot of different ways, fashions, and other countries. It can be a very brutal sport with players hitting at the intent to hurt one another. With these intents come great consequences. In recent years the head injuries involved with this brutal game play have been getting uncomfortably high. Many rules have had to be enforced for player safety, because of the increase of head injuries resulting in tragic effects on players both old and new. One of the injuries that have had the most devastating effects is the concussion.
Across numerous sports in the world, helmets are a staple of safety. Assumed to be a benefit, most athletes do not consider the risks of a helmet; both mental and physical risks. Society tells us that no matter what; a helmet will be safer than being exposed to harmful elements. There is also the idea that helmets are beneficial, but the way athletes use them causes more injuries than if a helmet had not been used at all. This culture, using your helmet as a tool, encourages more risky behavior for helmet wearers. Adventure writer and pilot, Lane Wallace argues that football culture is to blame for current helmet use, and that helmets are beneficial in her article “Do Sports Helmets Help or Hurt?” In his article “Disposable Heroes”, Neurologist David Weisman reasons that the worst helmets might be a better solution than better helmets.
A study of players shows that off only the 52 players who wore headgear during the season, the unprotected majority of the players in the study were 2.65 times more likely to have been injured: 52.8% of participants who did not use headgear reported being injured, compared to 26.9% of participants who did. Also some studies show that females are more likely than males to get a concussion, and tend to have more symptoms and require more time to recover. Headgear today resembles an enlarged headband, and weighs less than 2 ounces, and covers the forehead, temples and occipital bone in back of the head. The headgear is made of shock-absorbing foam situated between an outer layer of Lycra and an inner layer of sweat-absorbing polypropylene. Lycra is a synthetic fiber known for its great elasticity. It is stronger and more durable than natural rubber while polypropylene is a thermoplastic polymer that is just like plastic but more durable and flexible. The challenges that are facing most scientists and developers of this headgear today, are to be able to protect players from concussions and other head related injuries. Also a new form of protection is a headband that is an alternative to full concussion headgear that is the concussion headband. It has the benefits of being lighter, easier to clean and more stylish while having measurable protection benefits. While still unsure of the