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Head-ground impact conditions and helmet performance in E-scooter falls.
Wei, Wei; Petit, Yvan; Arnoux, Pierre-Jean; Bailly, Nicolas.
Affiliation
  • Wei W; LBA UMRT24, Aix Marseille Université/Université Gustave Eiffel, Marseille, France; iLab-Spine - Laboratoire International en Imagerie et Biomécanique du Rachis, Marseille, France. Electronic address: wei.wei@univ-eiffel.fr.
  • Petit Y; LBA UMRT24, Aix Marseille Université/Université Gustave Eiffel, Marseille, France; iLab-Spine - Laboratoire International en Imagerie et Biomécanique du Rachis, Marseille, France; École de technologie supérieure, Canada.
  • Arnoux PJ; LBA UMRT24, Aix Marseille Université/Université Gustave Eiffel, Marseille, France; iLab-Spine - Laboratoire International en Imagerie et Biomécanique du Rachis, Marseille, France.
  • Bailly N; LBA UMRT24, Aix Marseille Université/Université Gustave Eiffel, Marseille, France; iLab-Spine - Laboratoire International en Imagerie et Biomécanique du Rachis, Marseille, France.
Accid Anal Prev ; 181: 106935, 2023 Mar.
Article in En | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36571970
ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE:

Head injuries are common injuries in E-scooter accidents which have dramatically increased in recent years. The head impact conditions and helmet performance during E-scooter accidents are barely investigated. This study aims to characterize the head-ground impact biomechanics and evaluate bicycle helmet protection in typical E-scooter falls.

METHOD:

The finite element (FE) model of a hybrid III dummy riding an E-scooter was developed and validated. The FE model with and without a bicycle helmet was used to reproduce twenty-seven E-scooter falls caused by the collision with a curb, in which different riding speeds (10, 20, and 30 km/h), curb orientations (30, 60, and 90°), and E-scooter orientations (-15, 0, and 15°) were simulated. Head-ground impact velocities and locations were evaluated for the unhelmeted configurations while the helmet performance was evaluated with the reduction of head injury metrics.

RESULTS:

E-scooter falls always resulted in an oblique head-ground impact, with 78 % on the forehead. The mean vertical and tangential head-ground impact velocities were respectively 5.7 ± 1.5 m/s and 3.7 ± 2.0 m/s. The helmet significantly (p < 0.1) reduced the head linear acceleration, angular velocity, HIC_36, and BrIC, but not the angular acceleration. However, even with the helmet, the head injury metrics were mostly above the thresholds of severe head injuries.

CONCLUSION:

Typical E-scooter falls might cause severe head injuries. The bicycle helmet was efficient to reduce head injury metrics but not to prevent severe head injuries. Future helmet standard evaluations should involve higher impact energy and the angular acceleration assessment in oblique impacts.
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Full text: 1 Collection: 01-internacional Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Accidental Falls / Craniocerebral Trauma Type of study: Etiology_studies Limits: Humans Language: En Journal: Accid Anal Prev Year: 2023 Document type: Article Country of publication: ENGLAND / ESCOCIA / GB / GREAT BRITAIN / INGLATERRA / REINO UNIDO / SCOTLAND / UK / UNITED KINGDOM

Full text: 1 Collection: 01-internacional Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Accidental Falls / Craniocerebral Trauma Type of study: Etiology_studies Limits: Humans Language: En Journal: Accid Anal Prev Year: 2023 Document type: Article Country of publication: ENGLAND / ESCOCIA / GB / GREAT BRITAIN / INGLATERRA / REINO UNIDO / SCOTLAND / UK / UNITED KINGDOM