Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is one of the most important reasons for brain damage, often referred to as the "silent epidemic" due to its contribution to the number of related deaths and disabilities. TBIs are among the leading causes of death and morbidity in young people, with an increasing incidence in industrialized countries also in patients over 65. Sports and road accidents are among the contexts in which traumatic events occur more frequently. Moreover, long-term disabilities resulting from brain injuries have a serious impact on the quality of life of the affected people and their families, as well as a decrease in life expectancy. For these reasons, over the years the study of TBIs gained the increasing interest of researchers, aiming to a better knowledge of the mechanisms involved in the genesis and consequences of trauma, to reduce its negative outcomes, in particular through the development of increasingly effective protective devices like helmets. Research in this field rely on laboratory tests to study the effects of different types of impact, using anthropometric devices (e.g. the dummies used in the crash tests) to acquire impact test data. However, these instruments are generally designed for analysis on the body as a whole, while there is need for specific instruments for analysing the effects of localized impacts on the head. In this view, the present work is part of a long-term activity conducted at the DII Department of the University of Padua which involved the design and construction of a series of prototypes of human head models equipped with different types of sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes and pressure sensors) for the acquisition of data obtained from impact tests. Due to the complexity of the anatomical structures, it is particularly difficult to obtain a satisfactory biofidelity of the model, starting from the choice of materials. Biological tissues, in fact, have extremely peculiar physical and mechanical properties, which are very difficult to replicate with metals and polymeric materials. Also, the fabrication of the models is expensive and time-consuming, due to the prices of the materials and to the manufacturing (typically by casting or 3D printing) and assembly processes, with the insertion of the sensors as well. For these reasons, the computer simulation of the effects of the different types of impact through a validated finite element model is of particular interest. In this way it is possible to analyse any situation without using the physical model, which would inevitably be damaged or destroyed during the most demanding tests. The work described here concerns the realization of the finite element model of the last physical replica of a human head developed in 2022 by the DII Department, in turn built with particular attention to biofidelity in terms of biomechanical properties. The FEM model was obtained performing in parallel constitutive and geometrical analyses. Preliminarily, after an accurate bibliographic investigation, laboratory tests were carried out for the characterization of the materials used to build the surrogates of the anatomical parts (brain, meninges, skull and skin), with the aim to identify the constitutive parameters for the subsequent modeling of their mechanical behaviour. Finally, the STL files of the parts of the physical model were suitably pre-processed using Meshmixer (by Autodesk) software. These were then imported into Fusion 360 (by Autodesk) CAD design software to get the solid models for subsequent finite element analysis, performed with Abaqus FEA program by Dassault Systemes. To reduce the time required for the analysis, in this work it was chosen to simulate a drop test of the right half of the head surrogate, to get some preliminary information about the behaviour of the different materials when they interact, along with the analysis of the computed output data. Future developments will include the validation of the whole model.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is one of the most important reasons for brain damage, often referred to as the "silent epidemic" due to its contribution to the number of related deaths and disabilities. TBIs are among the leading causes of death and morbidity in young people, with an increasing incidence in industrialized countries also in patients over 65. Sports and road accidents are among the contexts in which traumatic events occur more frequently. Moreover, long-term disabilities resulting from brain injuries have a serious impact on the quality of life of the affected people and their families, as well as a decrease in life expectancy. For these reasons, over the years the study of TBIs gained the increasing interest of researchers, aiming to a better knowledge of the mechanisms involved in the genesis and consequences of trauma, to reduce its negative outcomes, in particular through the development of increasingly effective protective devices like helmets. Research in this field rely on laboratory tests to study the effects of different types of impact, using anthropometric devices (e.g. the dummies used in the crash tests) to acquire impact test data. However, these instruments are generally designed for analysis on the body as a whole, while there is need for specific instruments for analysing the effects of localized impacts on the head. In this view, the present work is part of a long-term activity conducted at the DII Department of the University of Padua which involved the design and construction of a series of prototypes of human head models equipped with different types of sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes and pressure sensors) for the acquisition of data obtained from impact tests. Due to the complexity of the anatomical structures, it is particularly difficult to obtain a satisfactory biofidelity of the model, starting from the choice of materials. Biological tissues, in fact, have extremely peculiar physical and mechanical properties, which are very difficult to replicate with metals and polymeric materials. Also, the fabrication of the models is expensive and time-consuming, due to the prices of the materials and to the manufacturing (typically by casting or 3D printing) and assembly processes, with the insertion of the sensors as well. For these reasons, the computer simulation of the effects of the different types of impact through a validated finite element model is of particular interest. In this way it is possible to analyse any situation without using the physical model, which would inevitably be damaged or destroyed during the most demanding tests. The work described here concerns the realization of the finite element model of the last physical replica of a human head developed in 2022 by the DII Department, in turn built with particular attention to biofidelity in terms of biomechanical properties. The FEM model was obtained performing in parallel constitutive and geometrical analyses. Preliminarily, after an accurate bibliographic investigation, laboratory tests were carried out for the characterization of the materials used to build the surrogates of the anatomical parts (brain, meninges, skull and skin), with the aim to identify the constitutive parameters for the subsequent modeling of their mechanical behaviour. Finally, the STL files of the parts of the physical model were suitably pre-processed using Meshmixer (by Autodesk) software. These were then imported into Fusion 360 (by Autodesk) CAD design software to get the solid models for subsequent finite element analysis, performed with Abaqus FEA program by Dassault Systemes. To reduce the time required for the analysis, in this work it was chosen to simulate a drop test of the right half of the head surrogate, to get some preliminary information about the behaviour of the different materials when they interact, along with the analysis of the computed output data. Future developments will include the validation of the whole model.

Development and validation of the finite element model of an instrumented human head surrogate for impact tests

BALDOIN, ELISA
2022/2023

Abstract

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is one of the most important reasons for brain damage, often referred to as the "silent epidemic" due to its contribution to the number of related deaths and disabilities. TBIs are among the leading causes of death and morbidity in young people, with an increasing incidence in industrialized countries also in patients over 65. Sports and road accidents are among the contexts in which traumatic events occur more frequently. Moreover, long-term disabilities resulting from brain injuries have a serious impact on the quality of life of the affected people and their families, as well as a decrease in life expectancy. For these reasons, over the years the study of TBIs gained the increasing interest of researchers, aiming to a better knowledge of the mechanisms involved in the genesis and consequences of trauma, to reduce its negative outcomes, in particular through the development of increasingly effective protective devices like helmets. Research in this field rely on laboratory tests to study the effects of different types of impact, using anthropometric devices (e.g. the dummies used in the crash tests) to acquire impact test data. However, these instruments are generally designed for analysis on the body as a whole, while there is need for specific instruments for analysing the effects of localized impacts on the head. In this view, the present work is part of a long-term activity conducted at the DII Department of the University of Padua which involved the design and construction of a series of prototypes of human head models equipped with different types of sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes and pressure sensors) for the acquisition of data obtained from impact tests. Due to the complexity of the anatomical structures, it is particularly difficult to obtain a satisfactory biofidelity of the model, starting from the choice of materials. Biological tissues, in fact, have extremely peculiar physical and mechanical properties, which are very difficult to replicate with metals and polymeric materials. Also, the fabrication of the models is expensive and time-consuming, due to the prices of the materials and to the manufacturing (typically by casting or 3D printing) and assembly processes, with the insertion of the sensors as well. For these reasons, the computer simulation of the effects of the different types of impact through a validated finite element model is of particular interest. In this way it is possible to analyse any situation without using the physical model, which would inevitably be damaged or destroyed during the most demanding tests. The work described here concerns the realization of the finite element model of the last physical replica of a human head developed in 2022 by the DII Department, in turn built with particular attention to biofidelity in terms of biomechanical properties. The FEM model was obtained performing in parallel constitutive and geometrical analyses. Preliminarily, after an accurate bibliographic investigation, laboratory tests were carried out for the characterization of the materials used to build the surrogates of the anatomical parts (brain, meninges, skull and skin), with the aim to identify the constitutive parameters for the subsequent modeling of their mechanical behaviour. Finally, the STL files of the parts of the physical model were suitably pre-processed using Meshmixer (by Autodesk) software. These were then imported into Fusion 360 (by Autodesk) CAD design software to get the solid models for subsequent finite element analysis, performed with Abaqus FEA program by Dassault Systemes. To reduce the time required for the analysis, in this work it was chosen to simulate a drop test of the right half of the head surrogate, to get some preliminary information about the behaviour of the different materials when they interact, along with the analysis of the computed output data. Future developments will include the validation of the whole model.
2022
Development and validation of the finite element model of an instrumented human head surrogate for impact tests
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is one of the most important reasons for brain damage, often referred to as the "silent epidemic" due to its contribution to the number of related deaths and disabilities. TBIs are among the leading causes of death and morbidity in young people, with an increasing incidence in industrialized countries also in patients over 65. Sports and road accidents are among the contexts in which traumatic events occur more frequently. Moreover, long-term disabilities resulting from brain injuries have a serious impact on the quality of life of the affected people and their families, as well as a decrease in life expectancy. For these reasons, over the years the study of TBIs gained the increasing interest of researchers, aiming to a better knowledge of the mechanisms involved in the genesis and consequences of trauma, to reduce its negative outcomes, in particular through the development of increasingly effective protective devices like helmets. Research in this field rely on laboratory tests to study the effects of different types of impact, using anthropometric devices (e.g. the dummies used in the crash tests) to acquire impact test data. However, these instruments are generally designed for analysis on the body as a whole, while there is need for specific instruments for analysing the effects of localized impacts on the head. In this view, the present work is part of a long-term activity conducted at the DII Department of the University of Padua which involved the design and construction of a series of prototypes of human head models equipped with different types of sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes and pressure sensors) for the acquisition of data obtained from impact tests. Due to the complexity of the anatomical structures, it is particularly difficult to obtain a satisfactory biofidelity of the model, starting from the choice of materials. Biological tissues, in fact, have extremely peculiar physical and mechanical properties, which are very difficult to replicate with metals and polymeric materials. Also, the fabrication of the models is expensive and time-consuming, due to the prices of the materials and to the manufacturing (typically by casting or 3D printing) and assembly processes, with the insertion of the sensors as well. For these reasons, the computer simulation of the effects of the different types of impact through a validated finite element model is of particular interest. In this way it is possible to analyse any situation without using the physical model, which would inevitably be damaged or destroyed during the most demanding tests. The work described here concerns the realization of the finite element model of the last physical replica of a human head developed in 2022 by the DII Department, in turn built with particular attention to biofidelity in terms of biomechanical properties. The FEM model was obtained performing in parallel constitutive and geometrical analyses. Preliminarily, after an accurate bibliographic investigation, laboratory tests were carried out for the characterization of the materials used to build the surrogates of the anatomical parts (brain, meninges, skull and skin), with the aim to identify the constitutive parameters for the subsequent modeling of their mechanical behaviour. Finally, the STL files of the parts of the physical model were suitably pre-processed using Meshmixer (by Autodesk) software. These were then imported into Fusion 360 (by Autodesk) CAD design software to get the solid models for subsequent finite element analysis, performed with Abaqus FEA program by Dassault Systemes. To reduce the time required for the analysis, in this work it was chosen to simulate a drop test of the right half of the head surrogate, to get some preliminary information about the behaviour of the different materials when they interact, along with the analysis of the computed output data. Future developments will include the validation of the whole model.
Head surrogate
Finite element model
TBI
Sensors
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12608/45842