With the new BSI test now well underway and out for public review it is set to be introduced in 2013 to come into action.
The existing BSI standard see's a helmet dropped onto a metal anvil in various locations, the force transferred through the helmet to the force sensors inside of the helmet upon the headform are recorded and if they exceed 250g this is deemed a failure.
However the ICC had identified despite helmets confirming to these standards the majority of serious injuries being sustained were around the facial area of the helmet with balls penetrating the peak/grille area as well as forcing the grille onto the wearers face causing laceration injuries.
With this in mind is has been decided by the BSI panel that a penetration test is to be introduced where a projectile is fired at the area in question and if the ball passes through or the grille strikes the plasticine upon the headform a failure is deemed. Both junior and adult balls are to be tested as the adult ball has a width of 73mm and a weight of 5.2oz whilst the junior ball has a width of 67mm and a weight of 4.3oz.
With the speeds it is viewed that an 80mph bouncer will reach the batsmen at a speed of approx 67mph once the ball has hit the pitch and travelled the distance to the player. This equated to 33m/s. A junior speed has been deemed at 55mph at the point of impact which equates to 25m/s.
The settings on the helmet need to be set so that they are obviously narrower than the balls width so that the helmet performs to keep the ball out when an impact is directed at the peak and grille location. The "golden ticket" in terms of design is to be able to keep the smaller Junior size ball out at adult speeds as a smaller ball mean an easier passage through the gap between peak and grille at higher velocity.
With the helmets we submitted for testing we specified an adult setting for the grille as well as a junior one for the smaller size ball. We asked that the helmets be tested until a point of failure could be determined. I.E if the helmet passed the test at 67mph then we kept increasing the speed until such a point that the ball passed through the gap or the helmet became damaged beyond use.
Adult Ball at 67mph
Junior Ball at 55mph
They key features of the helmet design that mean increased peak rigidity performs as desired in this test to ensure that the ball is kept from penetrating the gap when working in conjunction with the grille. These helmets are our entry level model and the Carbon Fibre shell models perform to an even higher level.
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Topic: Ball Penetration Testing (Read 3049 times)