The Effect of the Initial Position of the Head and Neck on the Dynamic Response of the Human Head and Neck to -Gx Impact Acceleration

In preparation of an analog of human head and neck, the reports by R. G. Snyder and others were noted which stated that initial position of the head and neck had a definite effect upon resulting response. An investigation was undertaken to attempt to quantitate this effect, as a part of a much larger study underway for several years.

Thirteen human volunteer subjects ranging from the 5th to the 97th percentile in sitting height were exposed to -Gx impact acceleration at peak sled accelerations of 6G and 10G. Two angles of the neck relative to chair and two angles of the head relative to the neck for a total of four conditions were tested for each subject for the 2 peak acceleration levels giving a total of 104 experiments. Instrumentation consisted of 6 accelerometers and two-axis rate gyro at the posterior spinous process of the first thoracic vertebral body, 6 accelerometers at the mouth, and a two-axis rate gyro at the top of the head. Three-dimensional photography from two orthogonally mounted onboard cameras was used also.

The input data at T₁ along with the differential effects of initial head position relative to T₁ on the linear acceleration at the origin of the head anatomical coordinate system and on the angular acceleration and angular velocity of the head will be presented along with the implications for modeling the response and a statistical comparison.