Case Study: A Safer Hockey Helmet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm8l-L8UuTc
Overview
Helios Global Technology Ltd. is collaborating with the Orthopaedic and Injury Biomechanical Group and the STAR Initiative (UBC Okanagan) to develop a hockey helmet that reduces the severity of impacts to the head.
Hockey injuries account for almost half of all traumatic brain injuries among Canadian children and teens taking part in team sports. In addition to the potentially significant hospital treatment costs, sustaining multiple brain injuries can impair a player for life.
Funding
This project is funded by a Mitacs-Accelerate Graduate Research Internship Grant. More information on the Mitacs-Accelerate program can be found at the Mitacs website.
Solution
Dr. Peter Cripton and Dr. Paul van Donkelaar are developing a safer hockey helmet using Armourgel, a novel energy-absorbing padding.
This collaboration between Helios Global Technologies, Armourgel, the Orthopaedic and Injury Biomechanics lab at UBCV, and the Survive and Thrive Applied Research (STAR) initiative at UBCO boasts a large and diverse research team with access to a number of state-of-the-art facilities.
The cutting-edge research being done by this team involves an extensive mechanical testing phase in the labs, which will be followed by physical testing on players. The results will be analysed with the expertise of the Health and Exercise Science department at UBCO.
Results
This research is currently ongoing.
The Labs: UBC Orthopaedic and Injury Biomechanical Group (OIBG) & STAR initiative (UBC-Okanagan)
The Orthopaedic and Injury Biomechanical Group (OIBG) offers a wide variety of state-of-the-art biomechanical labs with expertise in the orthopaedic and musculoskeletal fields.
Located in both the Vancouver General Hospital and the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UBC, the OIBG benefits from the research facilities of both institutions.
This interconnection allows for a practical, two phase approach:
- A mechanistic stage in the laboratory
- Incorporating relevant clinical or biological factors into the problem
Survive and Thrive Applied Research (STAR) is a collaboration between UBC, industry affiliates, and many other global partners, aimed at catalyzing economic growth and industrial innovation by accelerating technology commercialization by small- and medium-sized enterprises.
The group brings together academia and industry to apply research and development capacity and expertise in the fields of human protection and performance in extreme, remote and rural conditions. STAR aims to increase research, trade, and investment through support for innovation in this field and the related fields of advanced manufacturing, natural resources and healthcare.