Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/872564
IN THE WIND P32 6D HELMETS WINS HEAD HEALTH CHALLENGE III 6 D Helmets, the brand that revolutionized helmet technology in 2013 with the re- lease of Omni-Directional Suspension (ODS) technology, won the prestigious Head Health Challenge III and will receive a half-million- dollar award. The Head Health Challenge III is part of the Head Health Initiative created by the NFL and GE in collaboration with Under Armour and NIST (National Institute of Stan- dards and Technology). The contest, de- signed to spur the development of advanced helmet technology, took in 125 entries from which five were selected as finalists. The finalists each received an award of $250,000 and were given one year of development to vie for the grand prize. That $500,000 has now been claimed by 6D Helmets and Dynamic Research Inc. "We're thrilled to be named the winners of the Head Health Challenge III along with our proj- ect partners Dynamic Research Inc.," said Bob Weber, CEO and co-founder of 6D Helmets LLC. "This award allows us to continue to refine our system for future helmet applications." "The goal of this challenge is to support in- novation and help stimulate the marketplace with next-generation materials and design, and the impressive work by Dynamic Research and 6D Helmets has the potential to do just that," said Jeff Miller, NFL executive vice president of Health and Safety Initiatives. ODS technology was originally developed by 6D beginning in 2011 and was sold commercially in its 2013 ATR-1 motocross/off-road helmet line. During the Head Health Challenge, 6D and Dynamic Research used advanced computer modeling, finite element analysis and a series of iterative improvements to create a novel derivative of 6D's ODS technology with an unusual geo- metric structure. The judges' award decision was based on the new multi-impact material systems' performance, potential commercial application and novel design. It reduced certain measures of impact by more than 70 percent when compared with baseline foam material commonly used in protective gear. "The Challenge allowed us to exercise mate- rial testing and analysis that further unlocked the potential of our ODS technology," said Robert Reisinger, director of engineering and co-founder of 6D Helmets. "Over the course of the challenge, we gained a greater understanding of its capa- bilities by individually tuning for both linear and rotational forces to reduce brain injuring accelera- tions. Some of these new features are already supported in our latest product offerings." For more information about the GE-NFL Head Health Initiative and Head Health Challenges, visit PlaySmartPlaySafe.com. CN