TPR Exoskeleton Engineering: Dissipating Crush and Impact Energy in Heavy Hand Protection
Introduction: The Physics of Crush Injuries and Exoskeleton Mechanics On the decks of deep-well onshore drilling rigs, in the loading and hauling sections of open-pit heavy-duty mines, and during high-altitude assembly of super-heavy steel structures—in these front-line heavy industrial settings—workers’ hands are constantly exposed to the narrow gaps created by high-kinetic-energy mechanical movements. According to accident dynamics analyses by global occupational health and safety (EHS) organizations, the vast majority of disabling hand injuries on the front lines do not result from minor superficial abrasions, but rather from instantaneous pinch points and blunt impacts that occur within milliseconds: violently rebounding hydraulic clamps, heavy drill pipe clamps swinging out of control after […]