This Startup Gave Football Helmets a Massive Redesign. Now It's Doing the Same for Military Gear

Now with over 100 NFL players and thousands of high school students wearing Seattle startup companies created by Vicis football helmets, the company is a helmet to reduce concussion and other head trauma We expect from the inside to the outside to reconsider the design. There are good reasons. The company's two helmets won the top two in the NFL helmet safety test in early spring.

Currently, the company is expanding its focus from the arena to the battlefield. Last year, this startup signed an agreement to redesign the US military and part of helmets, co-founder, CEO Dave Marver. The company is working on integrating several football helmet technologies into standard helmets worn by the Army and the Marines.

US military helmets are optimized for ballistic protection, meaning to defend against bullets and shrapnel bullets. However, about 80% of military head injuries occur in areas that are not deployed, and this is usually not a problem. Instead, these injuries are dull deformations caused by accidents such as jumping out of an airplane, hitting the head during exercises or battle training.

From Seattle's outskirts in 2016, healthcare worker Joint Base Luis McCord made observations on Vicis to improve the impact characteristics of army and naval battle helmets. "At that time," Marver said that we need to focus very much on the development of ZERO 1 and it is still a start-up company, "he said, this is our first football product. But we are very strong, because we need to find these resources. In order for this to work, I appointed a team. "

The team has been behind the scenes for the past two years. Originally, Vicis funded the work, last year the US Army Natick Soldier Research and Development Engineering Center offered a development contract for start-up. The company has also started raising about $ 15 million in Series B funding, which will bring the company's total funds close to $ 80 million.

Currently, Vicis' work focuses on the liner inside the helmet. The Zero 1 football helmet has hundreds of layers of pillars that can be bent when subjected to shocks. "The pad internal technology uses the same engineering principle," says Marver.

These improvements are already measurable. Vicis early this year, using the Department of Defense tested in a lab environment on its pad testing protocol, at launch, its version should be better than 55% ~ 30% of each type currently used in the US military Is called.

Muffle said the updated helmet could be released one to two years after its launch. The Army is currently conducting its own tests on the pad. Vicis designed them to fit the current helmet, so the army can remodel the helmets that are currently deployed

Vicis's Zero 1 basically overrides the design of a traditional football helmet: the hard shell is inside and the soft part is outside. About 80 NFL players were wearing helmets during last season 's game. This year, I issued a helmet to 32 NFL teams, 80 university teams, and over 400 high school students.

It is difficult to find all the equipment. This device will also disappoint you. People think that football players are very vulnerable because they are equipped, but try to catch all the equipment you have made. The helmet blocks the capture view and you can not run fast. All these huge linebackers are all getting bigger. People always say "There are football players who do our gym." How is practicing soccer? The condition is easy, but let's add it to the mud. Also add 20 to 30 pounds of equipment to the back.

I have learned this topic. A helmet is one of the most important safety equipment that football players can have. In October 2010, a new regulation including the National Football League (NFL) Rules Manual was signed to ensure the safety of NFL players. A helmet helmet hits the following rules: any part of the helmet on the bat, any part of the spear or helmet will be the opponent (Azpiri) A. Blows between helmets became illegal in NFL. Penalty from NFL Player helmet to helmet is ongoing

Now with over 100 NFL players and thousands of high school students wearing Seattle startup companies created by Vicis football helmets, the company is a helmet to reduce concussion and other head trauma We expect from the inside to the outside to reconsider the design. There is a good reason for this. The company's two helmets earned the top two in the NFL helmet safety test earlier this spring. Currently, the company is expanding its focus from the arena to the battlefield. Last year, this startup signed an agreement to redesign the US military and part of helmets, co-founder, CEO Dave Marver. The company is working on integrating several football helmet technologies into standard helmets worn by the Army and the Marines.