Helicoid Industries Inc. releases preliminary results of weight reduction in protective helmets
The Helicoid™ fiber-reinforced composites technology will disrupt the protective helmets market by providing a lightweight solution with enhanced toughness and crash protection while enabling a reduction of raw material consumption.
Helicoid Industries Inc. announces preliminary results of weight reduction in protective motorcycle helmet prototypes, achieving up to 25% reduction in the amount of composite materials used while maintaining industry safety ECE22.05 standards.
Reducing the weight for helmet protection is highly desirable both in high-end performance applications, such as competitive racing, as well as in conventional consumer goods. A lighter helmet results in lower payload, improved comfort, and higher maneuverability. Reduced weight also lowers inertia forces in the event of crash which can decrease the severity of neck injury. Furthermore, the Helicoid™ technology allows for a more efficient use of raw materials, leading to reduced waste and higher production volumes. While weight reduction is desirable from both an economic and performance perspective, safety remains the paramount priority and crash resistance has to be proven against widely recognized standards, such as ECE* and CPSC**. The helmet has to resist perforation while not exceeding a predetermined value of; 1) peak acceleration of the center of gravity (CG) of the head, and 2) the Head Injury Criterion (HIC). The latter is a combined measure of acceleration and impact duration.
Dr. Lorenzo Mencattelli, Director of Research & Development at Helicoid Industries Inc. said:
“The Helicoid™ technology has the potential to disrupt the composite protective helmet market. These preliminary results show that we can integrate Helicoid™ technology in thin-shell fiber-reinforced structures, achieving significant margins of weight reduction while ensuring the helmet safety requirements. Additionally, by acting on the fiber architecture to steer damage and enhance impact protection, Helicoid technology can be quickly integrated into existing production lines currently in use without requiring any change in raw material sourcing or molding techniques. This offers a turn-key solution for short lead-time production and cost savings. Helicoid™ technology is certainly paving the way for a more efficient use of fiber-reinforced composites in sporting goods equipment.”
Helicoid Industries is working with several global-leading partners in the production of protective helmets that meet both peak acceleration and HIC requirements with a significant reduction of the amount of composites materials required for the shell of the helmet using the Helicoid™ technology. The impact tests have been performed on the helmet, at cold/hot temperatures and with impact against multiple types of surfaces, both flat and Curb Anvil. Helicoid Industries and its partners continue the development of the next generation, lightweight, impact resistant, biomimetic motorcycle helmets. These encouraging results are opening new avenues for different helmet-related opportunities where the mitigation of concussion-related injuries due to impacts is key. Helicoid is already working with several global-leading companies for motorcycle, hockey, downhill skiing, and is now looking to engage in the development of football helmets.
Helicoid™ is a bioinspired fiber-reinforced composite technology which draws its features from a wide variety of microstructures found in nature which have evolved to protect against severe impacts and harsh environments. Amongst these, the “smasher” Mantis shrimp, one of nature’s feistiest predators, evolved an internal architecture to protect the hammer-like club it uses to pulverize prey with incredible speed and force. The unique architecture, called a Helicoid™, protects the Mantis shrimp from self-inflicted damage as it delivers thousands of repeated impacts to hard-shelled prey. Such fiber architecture holds the ability of diffusing damage at a sub-critical level preventing the structure from catastrophic failure. Therefore, the club can dissipate energy while preserving its structural integrity. Helicoid Industries brings this bio-inspired concept to the fiber-reinforced composites industry, targeting a wide range of products and applications where impact resistance often limits structural efficiency and light-weighting potential.
*ECE stands for “Economic Commission for Europe,” which was created under a United Nations agreement in 1958.
**CPSC is the Consumer Protect Safety Commission
