A Comparison of Three Rotational Ice Hockey Helmet Test Protocols

Abstract

Current ice hockey helmets have successfully decreased the incidence of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) in the sport; however, concussions are still a major issue (Goodman, D., Gaetz, M., and Meichenbaum, D., 2001). This may be due to helmets not being tested using rotational impacts and rotational measures which can be reflective of concussive impacts (CSA Z262.1-15). Meehan (MSc Thesis, 2019) proposed rotation dominant impacts that reflect concussive events experienced in ice hockey as a potential helmet testing protocol to improve the protective capacity of ice hockey helmets for concussion. The researchers reported a high compliance pneumatic ram test was the test most representative of shoulder to head concussive impacts in professional ice hockey however, it was not as repeatable as the medium compliance pneumatic ram test. For head impacts from falling into the boards, the 45° Anvil Drop test was closest to the mean 44° angle of impact for head to board events in professional ice hockey. These tests haven't been observed using multiple helmet designs to investigate their ability to distinguish between helmet performance. The objectives of this thesis were to 1) determine if the Medium and High Compliance Pneumatic Ram tests and the 45° Anvil Drop test produce different magnitudes of dynamic response and brain tissue strain and 2) determine if the tests have the ability to distinguish changes in helmet design. The Medium Compliance Pneumatic Ram test produced the highest magnitudes of dynamic head response and strain followed by the 45° Anvil Drop and then the High Compliance Pneumatic Ram test. When the helmet designs in each test were compared, the 45° Anvil Drop test reported the most conditions (21) where there were significant differences in the dependent variables between helmets. The Medium Compliance Pneumatic Ram test reported 10 conditions with significant differences detected and the High Compliance Pneumatic Ram test reported 8 conditions with significant differences between helmets. The most sensitive test protocol was the 45° Anvil Drop followed by the Medium Compliance then High Compliance Pneumatic Ram tests. The results showed that all of the tests produced different levels of rotational acceleration and MPS, which supports separate test protocols in terms of helmet testing standards. Information from this thesis can be used by standards organization to guide the development of ice hockey helmet testing standards.