This flexible helmet could address the NFL's concussion problem

[cigaretteman]

Vicis, a Seattle medical tech company, has unveiled a new, flexible helmet intended to reduce the chances of a football player suffering a concussion.

Called the Zero1, the helmet uses a flexible outer shell and a core layer composed of hundreds of flexible columns that can absorb impact more fluidly.



The Zero1 is also intended to offer a better fit for players. Vicis took head measurements of 150 Seahawks and Washington Huskies football players to develop dozens of helmets fitting a wide range of head shapes and sizes.

Seattle design firm Artefact was hired by Vicis to help design a modern look for the Zero1.


Vicis says it’s tested the helmet through drop tests (where the G-force of impact is measured by dropping a sensor-laden dummy head onto a fixed rubber anvil from varying heights) and a more sophisticated, rotational test where a moving pendulum strikes the helmet from the side. The company claims that, compared to other leading helmets from Riddell and Shutt, its helmet can reduce the force of impact by anywhere from 20 to 50 percent—a figure they say has been corroborated by third-party labs

The biggest determinant for the Zero1 will be Virginia Tech’s STAR helmet rating test, which identifies the helmets that best reduce concussion risk, according to Sam Browd, a pediatric neurosurgeon and co-founder of Vicis.

“If numbers end up panning out, we think we’re going to significantly improve the safety of the sport,” Browd told Wired. “I don’t think we’re reducing all force the head sees, but we’re reducing a substantial portion of the force that ends up being below the threshold that someone would sustain a concussion.”

As with any new technology, the initial retail price will be high. While most helmets cost anywhere from $200 to $400, the Zero1 will sell for $1,500.

Vicis will pitch their new helmets to all 32 NFL teams and the top 30-40 college programs, according to
http://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-vicis-football-helmet/
http://national.suntimes.com/national-sports/7/72/2431362/zero1-flexible-football-helmet

 

[dandh]

 

[Tom Paris]

They were talking about this on the SCORE yesterday. Hopefully the outside is still slick and not grippy so blows can still be glancing and not grabbing...because that can cause torque to the neck.

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

Need to get rid of helmets altogether and play rugby style...they tackle with their shoulders and avoid head to head contact because...they don't have helmets.

 

[Hoosierhawkeye]

Need to get rid of helmets altogether and play rugby style...they tackle with their shoulders and avoid head to head contact because...they don't have helmets.

Concussions and head trauma are a major part of Rugby too. Also there are major differences in the way the sport is played which show why that's a bad idea.

I see a lot of concussions happening when receivers are trying to make a play to catch a forward pass and a defender is going up and trying to defend it. The forward pass isn't a part of Rugby.

Removing helmets would just make things worse. These guys don't get concussions because the helmet makes them feel invincible. They get concussions because they are trained to put their bodies on the line because the minute they don't they are replaced with someone who will.

Helmets right now prevent head injuries worse then concussions.

 

[linkshero]

How hard is it to post a pic? I didn't come to this thread for read.

 

[Titanhawk2]

So what keeps your brain from sloshing around after a big hit? What keeps you from getting whiplash effect from a big hit? The helmet basically keeps your skull from cracking.

 

[unIowa]

So what keeps your brain from sloshing around after a big hit? What keeps you from getting whiplash effect from a big hit? The helmet basically keeps your skull from cracking.

This...the brain bouncing around from big hits that cause a whiplash effect are not going away. This might help a little but I can't imagine it as a cure all. Tackle football is a dying sport boys (and that makes me sad).

 

[herecomethehawkeyes]

 

[RushProbst]

View embedded media

A lot of the hits in the video are illegal.
Any of the tackles where the tackler fails to wrap up are illegal.
Also any of the tackles where the tackler lifts the runners legs above parallel.

 

[strummingram]

Brain sloshing is still going to occur. In fact, if they think they can now hit harder... they will.

 

[whatsup13579er]

So what keeps your brain from sloshing around after a big hit? What keeps you from getting whiplash effect from a big hit? The helmet basically keeps your skull from cracking.

You will never get rid of the brain moving around inside the skull. What this helmet would do is absorb some of the impact in the helmet lessening the force of the brain hitting the skull.

If you place a hard piece of plastic on top of a nail and hit it with a hammer, the nail is going to absorb a lot of the force of the hammer because the hard plastic won't absorb much.

If you place a piece of soft plastic on the nail and hit it with a hammer, the nail won't absorb as much of the force because the soft plastic will absorb some of the force.

 

[Vroom_C14]

This...the brain bouncing around from big hits that cause a whiplash effect are not going away. This might help a little but I can't imagine it as a cure all. Tackle football is a dying sport boys (and that makes me sad).

Yep, 3 impacts occur, what ever hits you, your head hitting helmet and your brain hitting the inside of your skull (fluid sac and all). How about impacts from the side or the the back when a guy is whipped down?

 

[strummingram]

I sometimes think the generations 100 years from now will look on football and think "What in the HELL were they thinking???"

 

[pink shizzle]

Need to get rid of helmets altogether and play rugby style...they tackle with their shoulders and avoid head to head contact because...they don't have helmets.

Concussions and head trauma are a major part of Rugby too. Also there are major differences in the way the sport is played which show why that's a bad idea.

I see a lot of concussions happening when receivers are trying to make a play to catch a forward pass and a defender is going up and trying to defend it. The forward pass isn't a part of Rugby.

Removing helmets would just make things worse. These guys don't get concussions because the helmet makes them feel invincible. They get concussions because they are trained to put their bodies on the line because the minute they don't they are replaced with someone who will.

Helmets right now prevent head injuries worse then concussions.

I've been playing rugby for about a year now and no one on the team has had a concussion yet. Part because of the way a tackle is made. In rugby you have to actually tackle someone- you can't dive at the knees or put your shoulder into someone without wrapping up or else it's not a tackle/can get you carded. I feel like the tackling in football where the defender just puts his head and shoulder down and goes for a big hit is an issue (for injuries and because they don't wrap up and secure the tackle).

But there is also validity to the difference in how the game is played like Hoosier said, such as how you can only pass backwards and the hits that result.

 

[KitingHigh]

I sometimes think the generations 100 years from now will look on football and think "What in the HELL were they thinking???"

Until they need Flash Gordon to save them that is.

 

[WhiteSoxClone]

I sometimes think the generations 100 years from now will look on football and think "What in the HELL were they thinking???"

I've also wondered the same thing. Also, this is a complete and total subject change, but I've wondered if people 100 years from now will look back at the number of people who died in auto accidents and just be absolutely amazed. Maybe they won't ever get the self-driving car figured out, but if they do (and I think 100 years is enough time considering where they are now), future people will probably be shocked at how regular vehicle accident deaths were.

But then again, their antibiotics won't work anymore and they'll be dealing with diseases we mostly know from our history books, so we've got that going for us.

 

[The Tradition]

When do the ultimate fighting people start getting flack for this crap?

Willing combatants getting concussions? Too freaking bad for them.

 

[joelbc1]

No face mask.
If the game of football is serious about concussions, they have to look no further than removing the face mask from the helmet. Tackling technique will improve noticeably once the face mask is removed. Players will think twice before targeting/spearing. A couple of broken noses and a few missing teeth is a great educator.