12-04-2017, 04:26 PM
Only recently has the racing industry recognized that the main cause of race-related deaths are basal skull fractures caused by excessive head movements and neck loading. The Legend of Racing Dale Earnhardt's death demonstrated to the racing world and the general public that what appears to be a low-impact crash can be fatal. Under development and extensively tested for over a decade, there is a device that can reduce the risk of serious injury or even driver death in an accident. It is the head and neck support device (HANS).
The HANS head and neck brace was invented by Dr. Robert Hubbard, a professor of biomechanical engineering at Michigan State University. Many debilitating or fatal head and neck injuries could be prevented using this system. In 2000, compact versions of HANS (Figure 2) were developed for CART, IRL, F1, NASCAR, NHRA, ASA, sports cars, Power Boating and many other racing series.
Extensive testing has shown that HANS constantly reduces the potential for injury to head movements and neck loads.
The latest example of engineers' efforts to make Grand Prix races as safe as possible is the new Head and Neck Support (HANS). The system is easy to use and extremely efficient. Avoid excessive extension of the driver's neck region in case of extreme deceleration. It is designed to "complete" the driver's head protection, covering the appearance that is still exposed.
Forward movement of the head and neck has, so far, been the only unrestricted area in the driver's impact safety. Extensive research and testing has resulted in what experts now believe is a practical solution to the problem.
HANS has a carbon fiber collar securely attached to the upper body, with straps that attach to the helmet. The four main parts of the system are:
1. Support supports on the shoulders.
2. The filler is "tight" for comfort and adjustment.
3. Tethers-high strength Nomex fastenings secure the helmet to support the corset.
4. Full anchorage-system is secured by standard shoulder belts of 75mm.
The fundamental purpose of the system is to effectively form a single "body" of the head and torso.
By purposely directing the loads experienced after impact, the driver's helmet can help dissipate loads. HANS intends to prevent the driver's head from being thrown forward in an accident, a common "whiplash" situation that could lead to excessive spine extension.
HANS has a carbon fiber collar securely attached to the upper body, with straps that attach to the helmet. The four main parts of the system are:
1. Support supports on the shoulders.
2. The filler is "tight" for comfort and adjustment.
3. Tethers-high strength Nomex fastenings secure the helmet to support the corset.
4. The complete anchorage-system is secured by standard shoulder belts of 75mm
In 1997, DaimlerChrysler, Hubbard and Downing began cooperation to develop and evaluate HANS prototypes suitable for the FIA's Formula 1 environment.
A progression of the HANS prototypes were made and evaluated in many impact sled tests to develop a HANS (Figure 2) which is much smaller than the original device (Figure 1). This smaller HANS adjusts to reclined driving positions, as is the standard in F1, CART and IRL. In addition, the smaller HANS devices have worked spectacularly well for drivers in vertical seating positions like NASCAR, ASA, TransAm and the German Touring Car Series.
The HANS head and neck brace was invented by Dr. Robert Hubbard, a professor of biomechanical engineering at Michigan State University. Many debilitating or fatal head and neck injuries could be prevented using this system. In 2000, compact versions of HANS (Figure 2) were developed for CART, IRL, F1, NASCAR, NHRA, ASA, sports cars, Power Boating and many other racing series.
Extensive testing has shown that HANS constantly reduces the potential for injury to head movements and neck loads.
The latest example of engineers' efforts to make Grand Prix races as safe as possible is the new Head and Neck Support (HANS). The system is easy to use and extremely efficient. Avoid excessive extension of the driver's neck region in case of extreme deceleration. It is designed to "complete" the driver's head protection, covering the appearance that is still exposed.
Forward movement of the head and neck has, so far, been the only unrestricted area in the driver's impact safety. Extensive research and testing has resulted in what experts now believe is a practical solution to the problem.
HANS has a carbon fiber collar securely attached to the upper body, with straps that attach to the helmet. The four main parts of the system are:
1. Support supports on the shoulders.
2. The filler is "tight" for comfort and adjustment.
3. Tethers-high strength Nomex fastenings secure the helmet to support the corset.
4. Full anchorage-system is secured by standard shoulder belts of 75mm.
The fundamental purpose of the system is to effectively form a single "body" of the head and torso.
By purposely directing the loads experienced after impact, the driver's helmet can help dissipate loads. HANS intends to prevent the driver's head from being thrown forward in an accident, a common "whiplash" situation that could lead to excessive spine extension.
HANS has a carbon fiber collar securely attached to the upper body, with straps that attach to the helmet. The four main parts of the system are:
1. Support supports on the shoulders.
2. The filler is "tight" for comfort and adjustment.
3. Tethers-high strength Nomex fastenings secure the helmet to support the corset.
4. The complete anchorage-system is secured by standard shoulder belts of 75mm
In 1997, DaimlerChrysler, Hubbard and Downing began cooperation to develop and evaluate HANS prototypes suitable for the FIA's Formula 1 environment.
A progression of the HANS prototypes were made and evaluated in many impact sled tests to develop a HANS (Figure 2) which is much smaller than the original device (Figure 1). This smaller HANS adjusts to reclined driving positions, as is the standard in F1, CART and IRL. In addition, the smaller HANS devices have worked spectacularly well for drivers in vertical seating positions like NASCAR, ASA, TransAm and the German Touring Car Series.
