ZoneFlex ODM Helmet

EPS helmets ushered in a new era of cost effective safety. Unfortunately they can be uncomfortable. The rigid form means that if the inner shape does not fit your head, it is going to have hard spots. The genesis of the ZoneFlex system was to tie together a modular set of sections of EPS that would have flexibility to adjust to different head shapes.

Every product or service intended for the real world has to be discussed and analyzed at the earliest stages. Will it survive in the vast marketplace? Is there a need? is it the right time and place? How can it be made to better fit the task and the anticipated tasks?

The fastest way to check a new idea is to build it and try it. We took and existing helmet and cut it into sections, glued the section back into the hard shell, and tried it on. Great result. Fit comfortably and had a nice comfortable flex in the hands. Evaluation of the basic concept complete. It was a go to develop further.

Does it already exist? We had never seen anything exactly like it, it seemed new, so we hit the internet. Product descriptions, patent texts, images searches, we scoured the field for anything similar. There is a lot of product in the world, and a lot of good ideas, and almost everything has been done. ZoneFlex, looking good, nothing like it in EPS constructions, some similar concepts in the old school leather football helmet days. Time to take it to the next step.

Can it be patented? Should it be patented or just produced as fast as possible? Before showing the concept to potential customers, the decision is made by the client to apply for patent protection. This step involves researching the prior art. There are a lot of helmet patents out there! A narrow window is discovered in the method of joining the sections together with a cage. The client decides to build its patent on this aspect. This protects the IP and allows the project to be checked to see if customers are interested.

We like our work to be both flexible and grounded. Hybrid sketching involves hand working over a technical basis. We take the 3D model of and existing form and start to work on it. Instead of doing all of the work in the computer, which cuts down on the speed and fluidity of change, we choose to print out light gray representations of the basic elements and hand sketch over the top.

Tooling is expensive, the more that can be worked out before going to tooling the better. Here is where the hands on approach of model building comes into play. In our workshop, we section dozens of EPS shells and build networks of the sections into the various configurations. Testing each of them on our heads and on anyone we can find. New discovery, western and Asian head shapes normally require two distinct sets of tooling. Our prototype models are fitting everyone comfortably. This marks a very big competitive advantage, one helmet can now be marketed world-wide.
For helmets of course, the primary aspect is safety, we are able to take the prototypes to the testing machines and destructively test them to insure standards compliance. They pass with flying colors. All good.

NXAKT takes it’s industrialization very seriously. The factory has never made anything like this, in typical fashion, they say it cannot be done. We are familiar with the industrial processes and offer various solutions on how the product can be economically and efficiently molded. After discussion with the factory, after all jamming a solution through is never going to work, an approach is decided upon. Nxakt builds a 3D model of the structure, transfers the geometry to manufacturing where a test cavity is built. The first EPS foam is molded into the configuration and proves is manufacturing viability.

Design decisions require experimental data and substantial experience; they should never be made based solely on a software simulation. Simulation is not intended to replace physical testing of prototypes, which is required to validate any design.

This advice was very evident in the ZoneFlex, all of the items were in place when a negative surprise was discovered. Noise, squeaky EPS, like nails on a chalkboard. A potential project killer. Next round of prototypes is based on the elimination of the noise. Surface finishes, sliding layers, barrier materials. Turns out BMW had a huge problem with the same thing, we are not alone, and we need to eliminate the sounds.

Since TSG needed catalogs printed before actual samples were ready, Nxakt produced product renderings to show the finished product for pre-sales and the major trade shows. Airflow diagrams and videos animations were also produced to support the sales.

Basic EPS was required in this task, teflon materials, Tyvek and polyethylene and injection molded nylon reinforcements were all brought into this project.

The manufacturer, Kuji Sports, was able to bring in additional customers to use the exclusive technology in its products, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional sales.

TSG, based in Switzerland, was the first to incorporate the technology in its Kraken line of helmets. The Kraken won the “ispo | Boardsports Award” at the 2011 Munich ispo show.

The Arctic Kraken helmet with flexible interior optimizes comfort and offers superior protection.

TSG has refined the Arctic Kraken’s helmet technology and is now proud to launch a new ski and snowboard helmet for the 2011/12 winter season, sporting superb wearing comfort as well as excellent protection properties.

Each and everyone of us has an individual head shape. So how could a stiff helmet fit all of those different heads? Most of the time, the solution is rather large helmet shell which is adapted to the wearer’s anatomy with pads and cushions where needed. This is far from perfect a solution! Whereas helmets with a good anatomical shape do not fit heads which are not standard.

Other helmet manufacturers on the market offer an adjustment mechanism including a small wheel to adapt the unfitting helmet to the wearer’s head. This wheel ties an inside strap around the head while the inner and outer helmet shell and shape remain unchanged. A helmet with this system might move and wobble on the head while adjustment mistakes might cause a bad fit and make the helmet slip out of position.

Flexible interior for individual head shapes
Presenting the Arctic Kraken’s FlexTech Technology, TSG offers the ultimate solution to unsatisfied helmet users. The helmet’s interior is divided into pieces just like a cake, with eight separate parts wrapping the head and offering enough space for the entire helmet to adapt to the individual head shape of its wearer – because a 54 cm head size does not tell if the head is rather round or oval.

An innovation, these parts are no longer interconnected via a complex spacer but feature an injected flexible synthetic strap only. This provides for additional flexibility and even lower weight.