Effect of Shaking at or Near Resonance of a Simple Head Model on Skull/Brain Connectors

Abstract

A solid model of a six-month-old child has been developed using average human anatomical characteristics combined with crash test dummy dimensions. The model consisted of a body and limbs, and a neck and head combination with the head being hollow and housing a hemispherical brain. This model was then exposed to a linear sinusoidal input displacement to the chest, and the angular displacement of the skull and brain were observed. The resulting data showed that the oscillatory behavior was a function of frequency, and maximal oscillations existed at a frequency close to the expected natural frequency of the head/neck system, and at a frequency one order of magnitude greater than this frequency. In addition, when a square wave was applied, rather than a sine wave, the resulting oscillation proved to be more violent; and finally, a real input was applied to the model, from previous tests, to discover if a different oscillatory behavior resulted.