Reduction of Blast Induced Head Acceleration in the Field of Anti-personnel Mine Clearance

The blast wave that is generated from the detonation of an anti-personnel mine can induce significant accelerative loading to the head of a deminer, when the wave collides with the victim. The injury potential posed by the resulting head acceleration in the context of demining, has not been previously studied. Instrumented anthropomorphic surrogates were used to evaluate the protective capabilities of various types of helmet systems employed in demining, for a range of mine threats, as defined by the explosive content. The HIC15 method of assessing injury potential was applied to the measured accelerations. A spectral analysis of signals was also performed. The injury analysis indicates that blast induced head acceleration can reach injurious levels, depending on the type of head protection employed and the explosive content of the anti-personnel mine. For the highest blast loading tested, there was a high probability for a fatal head concussive injury when a military helmet is worn without a visor, or when no head protection is worn. Properly designed helmet systems, which included a full-faced visor mounted on stable helmet platforms, were demonstrated to provide significant protection against blast-induced head acceleration.