Motorcycle armor
Encyclopedia
Motorcycle armor comes in a variety of forms, from traditional yellow foam
to high-tech compounds capable of absorbing large amounts of energy
. In its basic form an armored jacket will include shoulder
and elbow armor. Pants will include hip and knee protection.
backing with foam laminated to the inside. This type of armor is somewhat controversial because it is thought to not disperse force as well as the soft armor. It is also more likely to cause the leather immediately above it to wear through in the case of an accident.
respectively.
Whilst such systems have been shown to achieve similar performance to traditional foam and hard armor solutions, perceived benefits of molecular armor systems above more established types are pliability and comfort .
there are two standards covering "motorcyclists' protective clothing against mechanical impact" - EN 1621-1:1997 and EN 1621-2:2003. Both standards assess the performance of protective devices by measuring the force transmitted through it when impacted by a falling mass.
EN 1621-1:1997 assesses devices that are designed to protect the shoulder, elbow and forearm, hip, knee and lower leg regions. The test apparatus consists of a mass of 5 kg with a 40 mm x 30 mm striking face, dropped onto the sample mounted on top of a 50 mm radius hemispherical dome. The anvil is further mounted onto a load cell, allowing a measurement to be made of the force transmitted through the protector. The kinetic energy of the falling mass at impact is required to be 50J.
A protector subjected to this test method is deemed to conform to this standard if the average transmitted force of nine tests is less than 35 kN, with no single test result exceeding 50 kN.
"Level 1 protectors: The average peak force recorded below the anvil in the tests shall be below 18 kN, and no single value shall exceed 24 kN.
Level 2 protectors: The average peak force recorded below the anvil in the tests shall be below 9 kN, and no single value shall exceed 12 kN."
There is however, no mention of hyperextension/hyperflexion restraint (aka whiplash, but can include the whole spine), or of torsional restraint (torsional injuries can result from the afore-mentioned blows to hips or shoulders). This is the area where designs featuring hard armor could potentially be better than the softer types. One potential cause of injury that should be kept in mind is the contents of any bag or rucksack worn by the rider. Back protectors are often not included in the standard complement of armor although many jackets allow a back protector to be installed. Because of the more delicate nature of the spinal column, back protectors require that lower levels of force be transmitted. However, in the Cambridge Standard for Motorcyclists Clothing, Roderick Woods asserts that the majority of spinal injuries are caused by blows to the hip and shoulders. In the rare circumstance that a motorcyclist received a direct blow to the back the damage would be unmitigable by armor. The concept of a "back protector" is therefore not endorsed by Woods.
Foam
-Definition:A foam is a substance that is formed by trapping gas in a liquid or solid in a divided form, i.e. by forming gas regions inside liquid regions, leading to different kinds of dispersed media...
to high-tech compounds capable of absorbing large amounts of energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
. In its basic form an armored jacket will include shoulder
Shoulder
The human shoulder is made up of three bones: the clavicle , the scapula , and the humerus as well as associated muscles, ligaments and tendons. The articulations between the bones of the shoulder make up the shoulder joints. The major joint of the shoulder is the glenohumeral joint, which...
and elbow armor. Pants will include hip and knee protection.
Foam armor
This armor is the typical yellow foam similar to the foam you might find in a mattress. For its thickness it offers a relatively low level of protection .Memory foam
Memory foam armor achieves the highest levels of absorption to thickness . It is a very dense foam.Hard armor
Hard armor usually consists of a hard plasticPlastic
A plastic material is any of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic solids used in the manufacture of industrial products. Plastics are typically polymers of high molecular mass, and may contain other substances to improve performance and/or reduce production costs...
backing with foam laminated to the inside. This type of armor is somewhat controversial because it is thought to not disperse force as well as the soft armor. It is also more likely to cause the leather immediately above it to wear through in the case of an accident.
Strain rate sensitive armor
The use of highly viscoelastic materials in motorcycle armor has allowed for elbow, knee, shoulder and back armor to be manufactured in a soft and pliable state at rest. Upon the introduction of shock the armor changes at the molecular level and adopts extremely rigid and protective properties . Examples of this armor are SAS-TEC, d3o, Rukka APS air, EXO-TEC and TF armor. They are currently being used in pinnacle jackets, pants and suits by manufacturers such as REV'IT!, Firstgear, BMW Apparel, Scorpion, Rukka and AerostichAerostich
Aerostich is a company based in Duluth, Minnesota that produces and sells motorcycle safety clothing and other motorcycle related equipment, such as GPS systems, luggage, and hand tools. It was founded in 1983 by Andy Goldfine, who is also the founder of the nonprofit Ride To Work, Inc...
respectively.
Whilst such systems have been shown to achieve similar performance to traditional foam and hard armor solutions, perceived benefits of molecular armor systems above more established types are pliability and comfort .
CE certified armor
In EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
there are two standards covering "motorcyclists' protective clothing against mechanical impact" - EN 1621-1:1997 and EN 1621-2:2003. Both standards assess the performance of protective devices by measuring the force transmitted through it when impacted by a falling mass.
EN 1621-1:1997 assesses devices that are designed to protect the shoulder, elbow and forearm, hip, knee and lower leg regions. The test apparatus consists of a mass of 5 kg with a 40 mm x 30 mm striking face, dropped onto the sample mounted on top of a 50 mm radius hemispherical dome. The anvil is further mounted onto a load cell, allowing a measurement to be made of the force transmitted through the protector. The kinetic energy of the falling mass at impact is required to be 50J.
A protector subjected to this test method is deemed to conform to this standard if the average transmitted force of nine tests is less than 35 kN, with no single test result exceeding 50 kN.
Back protectors
European Standard EN 1621-2:2003 defines two levels of performance for CE approved back protectors. The test apparatus and procedure is similar to that of EN 1621-1:1997, but with a different impactor and anvil configuration. The impactor is a rounded triangular faced prism, of length 160 mm, base 50 mm, height 30.8 mm and radius 12.5 mm. The anvil is a radiused cylinder, with its axis orientated to the direction of impact, of height 190 mm, diameter 100 mm and rounded end radius 150 mm. When tested to the procedure defined in the standard, the two levels of performance are:"Level 1 protectors: The average peak force recorded below the anvil in the tests shall be below 18 kN, and no single value shall exceed 24 kN.
Level 2 protectors: The average peak force recorded below the anvil in the tests shall be below 9 kN, and no single value shall exceed 12 kN."
There is however, no mention of hyperextension/hyperflexion restraint (aka whiplash, but can include the whole spine), or of torsional restraint (torsional injuries can result from the afore-mentioned blows to hips or shoulders). This is the area where designs featuring hard armor could potentially be better than the softer types. One potential cause of injury that should be kept in mind is the contents of any bag or rucksack worn by the rider. Back protectors are often not included in the standard complement of armor although many jackets allow a back protector to be installed. Because of the more delicate nature of the spinal column, back protectors require that lower levels of force be transmitted. However, in the Cambridge Standard for Motorcyclists Clothing, Roderick Woods asserts that the majority of spinal injuries are caused by blows to the hip and shoulders. In the rare circumstance that a motorcyclist received a direct blow to the back the damage would be unmitigable by armor. The concept of a "back protector" is therefore not endorsed by Woods.