On the back of Samsung’s global initiative and promise to tackle the world’s biggest problems, the corporation has drawn its focus to concussion in contact sport. With this, studies were followed by tests in Australian rugby, and will look to penetrate global sporting markets as the innovation takes off.
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The NFL, Australian Rules Football and both brands of Rugby are by far and away the entities that capture the most headlines when it comes to brain injury in sport, and for good reason. When men weighing upwards of 220lbs hit blinding speed before colliding with one another, there’s always going to be some form of strain on the body, and Samsung have honed in on what is arguably the most important part of the body; the brain.
Samsung Australia brought together a number of leading scientists, including neuroscientist Dr. Alan Pearce and industrial designer Braden Wilson to collaborate on a prototype device that will help everyone from athletes, to coaches, to referees better understand the impact of concussions.
The BrainBand, as it’s called, is a headband equipped with sensors on the back that measure the force of an impact. Lights embedded into the band also show the severity of a blow to the head: yellow, orange and red, the latter which signals high alert and that a player should be pulled from the field. Data is transmitted to medics, coaches and referees in real time via Samsung devices.
“Developing the BrainBand has been an eight-month journey, but we’re still only beginning to understand the dangers of concussion,” said Leo Burnett Sydney Joint ECD Vince Lagana. “It’s exciting to know that we’re helping to expand that knowledge with technology that can provide real-time feedback–an essential part of reducing the alarm caused by concussions.”
Although we’ve seen similar ideas in the past, nothing has come close in terms of practicality and efficiency. The band does not appear to distract or impede the playing conditions and the fact that officials, coaching staff and medics can all view real-time information specific to each player could be truly helpful.
With the growing need for action, the BrainBand is a giant leap in the right direction for concussion in sport.