TITLE:
Pneumatic Boxing Glove Reduces Upward Drift in Peak Force and Loading Rate over a Long Series of Impacts
AUTHORS:
Paul Perkins, Alex Jamieson, Wayne Spratford, Allan Hahn
KEYWORDS:
Boxing Safety, Low-Impact Boxing Gloves, Modified Boxing, Pneumatic Boxing Gloves, Protective Equipment for Boxing, Sport Technology, Sport Safety
JOURNAL NAME:
World Journal of Engineering and Technology,
Vol.7 No.1,
December
20,
2018
ABSTRACT: A conventional boxing glove and a prototype pneumatic glove were each fitted to a mechanical fist and dropped 253 times from a height of 3 metres on to a force plate covered by an ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) mat. Impact dynamics were measured and modelled. From the outset, peak impact force and peak rate of force development (loading rate) were lower for the pneumatic glove. For both gloves, these variables displayed upward drift during the drop series, but the drift was smaller for the pneumatic glove. Consequently, the magnitude of the protective effect provided by the pneumatic glove increased with the number of impacts. For the conventional glove, change in peak force showed a close inverse relationship to force plate contact time (R2>0.96) and the time from first contact of the glove with the force plate to attainment of peak force (R2=0.85). These relationships were much weaker for the pneumatic glove (R2=0.09 and 0.59 respectively), suggesting the possibility of a more complex impact damping mechanism. Following the 253 drops of the pneumatic glove, the EVA mat covering the force plate was replaced, and another 10 drops then performed. Peak force readings were immediately reduced to an extent suggesting that 26%-34% of the increase that had occurred over the 253 drops was attributable to impact-induced change in mat properties. This has implications for future experimental designs. Overall, the findings provided further evidence of the potential of pneumatic gloves to enable safer boxing.