Testing Results
Warrior Tough helmets were tested at a certified lab using a pneumatic ram. The patented design of the Concussion Counterpunch helmet performed precisely as intended, transferring the energy as Parkinson (1982), Cantu (1992) and Shaw's (2002) research described, allowing kinetic energy to flow through the head to the body as a method to avoid a concussion.
Another main safety feature of the Warrior Tough helmet is its ability to increase the mass of the head by bracing to create a connection between the head and the torso. The idea is to artificially make the mass of the head and neck so large it is not easily moved by a strike. This same principle is applied when an MMA fighter makes a connection between their head and the mat. “Unarmed combat experts and street fighters have long known that it is virtually impossible to knock out an opponent whose head is fixed against a wall or on the ground. They do not possess the force in their limbs to move both the head and the wall or the ground behind it” (Parkinson, 1982 p.132).
Warrior Tough saw an opportunity to reduce concussion potential in combat sports through the application of scientific research findings addressing the benefits of energy transfer and increased head mass when taking the defensive stance: bracing.
However, there is a large gap between theory and application. We could not claim to be a concussive reduction helmet until we tested the new helmet design to verify that the design interventions worked - and they did!
Front Impact Battering Ram Test
Results
USA Certified headguard struck with extreme concussive force
Warrior Tough helmet struck with extreme concussive force
Table 1: Front Impact Results
Table 1 presents the results for a front impact test for a Certified Boxing headguard used as a control and two Warrior Tough prototype helmets.
Pellman, et al., (2003), suggested that the threshold for mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in professional football use the Head Injury Criterion (HIC) scale value of 250.
Note how all of the impacts received by the control headguard, represented by blue lines in Table 1, enter the concussion zone while both Warrior Tough prototypes, represented by orange and grey lines stay below the concussion threshold.
Concussion Zone
Table 2: Side Impact Results
Concussion Zone
Table 2 presents the test results for side impacts using a Certified Boxing headguard as a control and two Warrior Tough prototype helmets.
Pellman, et al., (2003), suggested that the threshold for mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in professional football use the Head Injury Criterion (HIC) scale value of 250.
Note how all of the impacts received by the control headguard in Table 2, represented by blue lines, enter the concussion zone while both Warrior Tough prototypes, represented by orange and grey lines stay below the concussion threshold.
Headguard vs Helmet
What's the difference?
There are a lot of helmets and headguards on the market with only a select few that are tested. Because most headguards are not tested, you have no idea how well they work, if they work, or if they promote concussions. At Warrior Tough we put helmets into three categories: helmet-like objects, headguards, and concussion reduction helmets.
First, there are many helmet-like objects out on the market. They look like a protective helmet but perform like a toy. These objects can actually promote injury due to their design or the materials used. They are often inexpensive, and sadly, with safety gear you get what you pay for.
Second, are old-style headguards that are rugged and stop superficial injuries such as scrapes, cuts, and bruises as intended but often are top-heavy and promote brain and neck injuries because their padding adds to the weight of the head - actually promoting concussions. While these headguards are not cheap, they tend to offer an improved level of protection over helmet-like objects. However, headguards tend to have similar issues to helmet-like objects because they follow the same traditional construction that does not take into consideration brain injury. If the concussion problem could have been solved by adding padding these helmets would have done it over the past 100 years- but that was not the objective of these headguards.
Lastly, there are concussive reduction helmets designed to reduce superficial injuries as well as concussive injuries. Warrior Tough is the only company who makes and sells this type of helmet for combat sports, so they patented the design. These helmets represent the next generation of safety helmet design using scientific research principles with interventions to actively reduce brain injury potential and promote proper technique. The Warrior Tough helmet design was ram tested, not drop tested. Because all impact hits turn into rotational energy at some point in actual use, ram testing provides the closest comparison to forces found where the helmets would be used.
All testing was done by an independent certified testing facility. Testing is expensive and is the reason most head protection on the market is never tested - unless producers seek to certify headguards for competition. Warrior Tough tested two prototype helmets to empirically see the effects of the design interventions, and we are excited to share the results. The methods followed by the testing facility include the use of a USA Boxing certified headguard as a control to represent the old-style headguard. The control headguard represented the current safety standard available for competition headguards. Although specific data is proprietary, aggregate data was able to be generalized to provide results for how the Concussion Counterpunch helmet responds to impact energy compared to old-style headguards.
The normal testing apparatus was modified to add a shoulder component so the helmets that could brace would. The objective was to test the performance of a braced helmet against an old-style headguard that lacks the ability to brace to transfer kinetic energy.