THE EFFECTS OF IMPACT AVOIDANCE TECHNIQUES ON HEAD INJURY RISK

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of impact deflection and neck compliance on peak linear and peak angular accelerations during a front impact to a Hybrid III head using a pneumatic linear impactor. Impact deflection was done by translating the headform laterally and showed to be effective at reducing linear and angular accelerations as well as GSI. Neck compliance was altered using one Hybrid III 50th percentile neck and two modified Hybrid III necks. A less compliant neck increased linear acceleration but decreased angular acceleration. When compared to estimated injury thresholds, the results demonstrated that an increase in lateral translation or a decrease in neck compliance resulted in a significant decrease in the risk of head injury as reflected by peak linear and angular accelerations.