Woodpecker inspires cardboard bike helmet (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

Emily Anthes

If ever there were a creature that seemed destined to suffer from concussions, it would be the woodpecker. It pounds its head at into tree trunks 12,000 times per day, at speeds of 6 to 7m/s. And yet, despite this frequent, high speed head banging, the birds experience no brain damage. Not a lick.

Luckily for the woodpecker, evolution has handed it a variety of anatomical adaptations that protect its head during all that hammering. And soon, we humans may also be able to keep concussions at bay using the woodpecker’s time-tested methods.

Industrial designer Anirudha Surabhi has created the new, super-strong Kranium bike helmet, which protect cyclists’ heads by mimicking features of the woodpecker’s distinctive anatomy.

Surabhi’s interest in building a better bike helmet is personal. Several years ago, he was riding his bike through Notting Hill in London when he had an accident. He was wearing a helmet but still ended up in the hospital with a concussion. “My fall wasn’t really that bad,” Surabhi says. “It was a minor fall, but still my helmet cracked.”

At the time, Surabhi was doing a master’s degree in design at the Royal College of Art, and he just happened to be looking for an idea for his final solo project. He decided to try to build a better bike helmet - and to take inspiration from nature.
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more: http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130115-woodpecker-inspires-bike-helmet

[Motown_Johnny]

1. I hope some football helmet designers are reading this

and are willing to spend the money to use the patent.

[eppur_se_muova]

3. Very good point ! The NFL could afford it.

Heck, they could afford to replace the helmets after every hit.

Related article: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cocktail-party-physics/2011/10/17/what-woody-the-woodpecker-can-teach-us-about-football/

[Motown_Johnny]

4. I am more worried about school kids,

but it has to start somewhere and if the NFL gets the ball rolling (so to speak) more power to them.

[Journeyman]

8. I saw a report on "60 Minutes" maybe 30 years ago on protective equipment for football. . .

the designer in that story had developed some potentially useful advances, including a seat-belt type strap that connected the helmet to the shoulder pads, to hold the head more rigid during play. But when asked if these advances would make the game safer, he told Mike Wallace that though they had the potential to do so, the problem is that every time football players are made safer they just hit each other harder.

Don't get me wrong: I'm all in favor of anything that protects the players. But as with everything in life, there are trade offs to safety. . .

[dipsydoodle]

2. I'd never given any thought as to why

woodpeckers don't concuss themselves.


btw - odd as it might sound the link cannot be accessed from the UK.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. Yeah, the 'future' thing is made for the USA, therefore the UK isn't allowed it

It doesn't make any sense to me. Try this:

http://anonymouse.org/cgi-bin/anon-www.cgi/http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20130115-woodpecker-inspires-bike-helmet

[dipsydoodle]

7. Ta for that.

This is weird. There was already the situation where it was impossible to get to our true home site from the US. I twigged that when I was in OH a couple of years ago. I'm wondering now as I wondered then if there is some censoring going on.

[muriel_volestrangler]

9. It's held to be 'competition' to commercial sites

making the content available to UK audiences is not as simple as removing the ads. bbc.com/Future is a commercial website produced by BBC Worldwide. Under the BBC's fair trading rules, commercial websites are not allowed to receive unfair promotion from the BBC's public services. This prevents us from being able to provide Future on bbc.co.uk

http://www.baekdal.com/opinion/bbc-future-is-blockingitself

[dipsydoodle]

11. Oh.

Thanks for that.

[Ellipsis]

5. Gives a whole new meaning to the term peckerhead...

[Whisp]

10. wow. this is wonderful. K&R