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Impact attenuation provided by shin guards for field hockey

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Abstract

Low-energy impact testing of hockey shin guards was carried out using a drop test impact rig and a new physical setup protocol. Two brands of shin guards were impacted once (2.6 J, 3.3 J; without and with a sock), and impacted three times (3.3 J; with a sock). The peak force and impulse of a single impact increased with increasing impact energy (by approximately 30 and 7%, respectively) whilst repeated impacts increased the peak force and decreased the impulse (by approximately 70 and 3–9%, respectively, between one and three impact events). The presence of a sock attenuated impact force to a greater extent than the guards alone, at both impact energies. As a sock is usually worn over hockey shin guards, its presence contributes to enhanced protection to the lower limb.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clothing and Textile Sciences, Centre for Materials Science and Technology, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, 9054, New Zealand

    Wan Syazehan Ruznan, Raechel M. Laing, Bronwyn J. Lowe & Cheryl A. Wilson

  2. Textile Technology, Centre for Industrial Technology, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Negeri Sembilan Branch (Kuala Pilah Campus), 72000, Shah Alam, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia

    Wan Syazehan Ruznan

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  1. Wan Syazehan Ruznan
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  2. Raechel M. Laing
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  4. Cheryl A. Wilson
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Correspondence to Raechel M. Laing.

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Ruznan, W.S., Laing, R.M., Lowe, B.J. et al. Impact attenuation provided by shin guards for field hockey. Sports Eng 21, 161–175 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12283-017-0260-z

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