Uncle Sam wants You! …to wear a helmet so he can measure and record the blows you take to the old noggin. This appears similar to the technology now embedded in new football helmets from Riddell that we wrote about two weeks ago.
The device, which will be checked every 30 days, can record 527 events ranging from being dropped on the ground to being blasted by a bomb. The sensor weighs 6 ounces, runs on a battery that can last six months and fits on the back of the helmet.
To better measure the causes and effects of traumatic brain injury, the Army wants to establish data on what happens to a soldier’s head during an IED blast. The sensor will measure the violent pulse of air after an explosion. Energy from this wave, known as overpressure, courses through the body, damaging brain cells and other organs.
The helmet device also will measure acceleration, the jolt soldiers receive from the explosion. It is one of the primary causes of death from an IED because it can snap the neck. The data will be downloaded to establish a database on the effects of blasts. The information will be studied by medical researchers and used to develop safer helmets.
Your information will never be shared with any third party.