Development of an Improved SPH-4 Retention Assembly

Abstract

Impact protection during a crash is one of the primary functions of a flight helmet. In order for the helmet to provide effective impact protection, the helmet must remain firmly secured on the head for the entire duration of the crash sequence. If the helmet is displaced on the head or comes off during the crash sequence, cranial exposure and subsequent head injury can occur. Previous research at USAARL has shown the retention assembly of the SPH-4 flight helmet often allows excessive helmet rotation or even helmet loss to occur during a crash. This report describes the construction and testing of a new SPH-4 retention assembly, the USAARL yoke harness, which will alleviate the helmet rotation/helmet loss problem. The load versus elongation under load and comfort of the USAARL yoke harness was compared to that of the currently used standard retention harness. The USAARL yoke harness was stronger, and stretched less under load than the standard retention harness. Comfort testing of the USAARL yoke harness showed the majority (72 percent) of those questioned preferred the USAARL yoke harness over the standard harness. Keywords: Impact protection, Helmet, Yoke harness, Retention harness, Retention assembly.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 1990
Accession Number
ADA222935

Entities

People

  • Ernest E. Hiltz
  • Joseph L. Haley. Jr
  • Robert H. Hines
  • Ronald W. Palmer

Organizations

  • United States Army Aeromedical Research Lab

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Force Facilities
  • Army Aviation
  • Assembly
  • Biomedical Research
  • Classification
  • Elongation
  • Engineering
  • Flight Helmets
  • Head Injuries
  • Health Services
  • Materials
  • Military Research
  • Rotation
  • Standards
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Test Methods

Readers

  • Human-Computer Interaction (HCI).
  • Materials Science
  • Military Engineering.