Bicycle 's inflatable "air bag helmet" when shocked is safer than normal helmet

In America, the main cause of concussion and brain damage is "falling off from a bicycle", and some states are obliged to wear a helmet when driving a bicycle. Meanwhile, bioengineering researchers at Stanford University, who questioned the safety of bicycle helmets made of styrofoam, tested the "airbag helmet" which develops when it receives shock, from a general helmet Has proved to be highly effective in preventing concussion and the like.

Modeling and Optimization of Airbag Helmets for Preventing Head Injuries in Bicycling | Springer Link
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10439-016-1732-1

Stanford researchers show air bag bike helmets have promise
http://news.stanford.edu/press-releases/2016/10/03/stanford-researc-helmets-promise/

The helmet that Stanford University's David Camarillo tested is a thing that the airbag deploys in response to the impact when wrapped around the neck in advance, wraps the neck and head instantaneously. You can see from the movie below how you can prevent the shock when the accident actually happens.

No helmet? No problem - The Hövding Airbag | Cycling Weekly - YouTube


Attach the airbag helmet to the neck as follows. The chuck of the wrapped part is connected to the switch on the left side facing, and the air bag is deployed when it is detached by impact.


Actually women wearing an airbag helmet and started the experiment.


Falling from a bicycle ...


You can see that the airbag is deploying earlier than the head is hitting the ground.




Mr. Camarillo made a drop test of this airbag helmet and ordinary Styrofoam helmet. The state of the test can be seen from the following movie.

Bike helmet showdown: Stanford researchers test new airbag tech - YouTube


The drop test is to compare the safety of each by covering the head of the mannequin containing the accelerometer with a helmet and letting it fall to the floor of the metal plate from a height of 0.8 meters at the minimum and 2 meters at the maximum.


By dropping the airbag helmets and foam polystyrene helmets under the same conditions, it was confirmed how much impact was absorbed.



As a result of the test, it was proved that the airbag helmet is hard to cause concussion six times as much as the foamed polystyrene helmet. Originally the airbag helmet was developed for those who say "I do not want to wear a helmet" from the apparent problem, but it is scientifically proven that safety is superior to conventional helmet in terms of safety. However, because the test was already done with the air pressure full and inflated, there are potential drawbacks that there is a possibility that the head may be shocked in a state not yet sufficiently inflated, said Mr. Camarillo I point out.