A large amount of data regarding children’s head mass and geometry has been collated and analysed to produce the prototype.

The FIA Institute is progressing the design for the first production prototype of its crash helmet for young drivers. The prototype will be taken to a Commission Internationale de Karting event in the summer for initial feedback regarding geometry, mass and styling.

However, the drivers will not be able to use it in competition until all tests have been completed. FIA Institute advisor Andy Mellor said: “At the moment, we are finalising the geometry of the helmet, after which we will commence the stringent laboratory testing to optimise the impact performance”.

The project, coordinated by the FIA Institute’s Open Cockpit Research Group, is the first to develop safety equipment specifically for young drivers. It is an essential development in safety as all driver helmets are currently made for adults. Merely making them smaller does not satisfy the specific requirements for children’s head protection..

The need for such change has been promoted by US motor sport medicine experts Dr Terry Trammell and Dr Steve Olvey. The FIA Institute began funding essential research into this field from it’s inception in March 2004. The Open Cockpit Research Group has worked in conjunction with the Karting Research Group to progress the project. Already great strides have been made.

A huge amount of data regarding children’s head mass and head geometry has been collated and analysed by Trammell and Olvey. The data was sent to Mellor and was used to create 3D models representing the average size, shape and mass of a child’s head for two age groups, seven- to 11-year-olds and 12- to 16-year-olds.

The 3D forms were then sent to Italian helmet manufacturer OSBE, which produced the first prototypes. The objective is to create a helmet that is significantly lighter than those currently used by young drivers. A production version may be ready during 2007.

The objective of the FIA Institute is to promote improvements in the safety of motor sport by supporting and disseminating the results of research; supporting training of officials, circuit and race personnel in safety procedures, practices and the use of equipment; supporting the protection of participants, officials and members of the public at international motor sport events and monitoring motor sport safety trends in order to identify research and regulation priorities.