Flat panel test hardware and technology for assessing ballistic performance of helmet personnel protective equipment

A method to assess ballistic performance of helmet personnel protective equipment, comprising:

• impacting a ballistic threat into a flat helmet analogue coupled with flat biofidelic head surrogate components, wherein the flat helmet analogue comprises a helmet shell material in flat panel form and at least one helmet suspension pad, and wherein the flat biofidelic head surrogate components comprise a skull skin surrogate, a skull bone surrogate, and a brain tissue surrogate;
• obtaining data from a pressure sensor provided between the helmet suspension pad and the flat biofidelic head surrogate components;
• obtaining data from one or more pressure sensors within the brain tissue surrogate;
• and
• assessing ballistic performance of the flat helmet analogue based on data comprising indicators of loads transmitted to the flat biofidelic head surrogate, fracture of the biofidelic skull bone surrogate, and intercranial pressure when the flat helmet analogue is subjected to a non-perforating ballistic impact.

A testing apparatus to assess ballistic performance of personnel protective equipment, comprising:

• a flat analogue of personnel protective equipment;
• flat biofidelic body surrogate components representative of a body region protected by the flat analogue, the flat biofidelic body surrogate components comprising a bone surrogate, and one or more additional biofidelic body surrogate components selected from the group consisting of a skin surrogate, a muscle surrogate, an organ tissue surrogate, and combinations thereof, wherein the flat analogue is adjacent to the flat biofidelic body surrogate components;
• and
• one or more pressure sensors provided between the flat analogue and flat biofidelic body surrogate components,
• wherein the testing apparatus provides data comprising indicators of loads transmitted to the flat biofidelic body surrogate, fracture of the biofidelic bone surrogate, and pressure in the flat biofidelic body surrogate when the flat analogue is subjected to a non-perforating ballistic impact.