A protective headpiece is a device worn on the head as an ornament or to serve a function. A protective headpiece, or headwear, refers to any type of helmet, hat, head band, mask, toque, cap, or other item, device or garment worn on the head, for the purposes of protection, fashion or any other function or combination of functions.
Protective headpieces provide protection from external forces in workplaces or recreational environments. For example, protective headpieces are used by firefighters and other emergency service workers, construction workers, tradesmen, professional and amateur athletes, as well as by children participating in sports and recreational activities. Some participants in sports or recreational activities choose to wear a protective headpiece, such as a ski or snowboard hat, that is designed primarily for fashion or protection from cold weather, rather than protection from external forces, such as impact forces.
A sports headpiece protects the wearer from injury by absorbing force in situations involving impact. However, particularly in sports such as hockey, football, and lacrosse, concussions and head injuries are still a concern even when players wear protective headpieces.
It is important to be able to identify situations in which a person should seek medical attention, particularly if expert advice is not available at the time.
Some prior approaches use one or more accelerometers to measure acceleration and/or deceleration of a sports headpiece due to an impact force. Based on computation of the complex acceleration and/or deceleration data gathered by the accelerometer, a determination can be made regarding the degree of the impact.
Improvements in the characterization of impact sensed at a protective headpiece, such as a protective headpiece, are desirable, wherein the predetermined head injury range of magnitude is adjustable between a practice setting and a game setting, and wherein the impact alert is visible to an individual wearing the protective headpiece.