Head-spine model evaluation of energy absorbing effectiveness of two helicopter crew seats

• Published in: Mathematical and computer modelling Vol. 11; pp. 335 - 340
• Main Author: Privitzer, Eberhardt
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 1988
• Subjects: energy absorbing seats; Head-Spine Model; performance evaluation; spinal injury prediction; structural dynamics; performance evaluation; energy absorbing seats; Head-Spine Model; spinal injury prediction; structural dynamics
• ISSN: 0895-7177; 1872-9479
• DOI: 10.1016/0895-7177(88)90510-9

The Head-Spine Model (HSM) is a highly-discretized 3-D idealization of the mechanical behavior of the human head-spine-torso structure. It was developed to study the dynamic response of this structure to high-G impact loads transmitted along the spine. The HSM; which consists of two distinct components, a general purpose structural dynamics code and a data base describing the model and the environment external to it, was used to evaluate the impact energy absorbing effectiveness of two types of vertically stroking helicopter crew seats. The model's spinal injury prediction feature, which is referred to as the Spinal Injury Function (SIF) and is used to evaluate the severity of 3-D impact acceleration environments, makes it an ideal analytical tool for application to this type of study. The energy absorbing performances of the two seats were evaluated in a relative sense by comparing the HSM SIF and internal load predictions from simulations of high-G impact tests conducted with the seats. This paper briefly describes the HSM, the approach used for this study and the results obtained, which indicate that one of the seats is more effective in absorbing vertical impact energy than the other.