1. Rationale
The initial involvement of the CPSC with playgrounds goes back to the 1970s and resulted in the first publication of the A Handbook for PUBLIC PLAYGROUND SAFETY in two volumes. Playground injuries were discussed along with the mechanisms of the injury. For example falls to the surface were considered to account for 59% of the injuries and it was noted that severity of the injury was related to the hardness of the surface materials. Further in section 12 of volume two, there is the first reference in the world related to the impact attenuation properties of the playground surface being such that when tested in accordance with the suggested test method in Paragraph 12.3, a surface should not impart a peak acceleration in excess of 200 gs to an instrumented ANSI headform dropped on a surface from a maximum estimated fall height. This is considered to be the basis for much of the impact attenuation work for impact attenuating surfaces in the United States.
Keywords
critical fall height; head impact; head injury criterion; HIC; impact; impact attenuation; impact test; injury; play; playground; play structure; shock; surface; Impact testing--sports applications/equipment; Instrumental measurement; Playground equipment--specifications; Sports equipment--specifications; Sports facilities playing surfaces--specifications; Velocity; Attenuation; Comparison techniques; Consumer safety specifications (playgrounds); Digitizers; Free fall test method; Head form velocity;
Citing ASTM Standards
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