Code for Raspberry Pi Zero W and adxl 345 accelerometer to sense g forces and inform football coaches of severe force on a players head in real time
- To provide a less expensive alternative of helmet concussion sensors for highschools (materials costing only up to 50 usd for each unit)
- Provides real time data to coaches during football games to create a safer environment for highschool football players
Raspberry Pi Zero W, ADXL 345 accelerometer, Pimoroni LiPo SHIM, any size 3.7v lithium ion battery, and a Raspberry Pi 3 B for the central server for every Raspberry Pi Zero W
The Pi Zero is inside the padding of the football player's helmet and processes all data from the accelerometer in real time. Then it sends a file with the severity of a hit if it is over a certain gForce threshold to the Pi 3 B which is in the coach's possession. The Pi Zero is connected to the Pi 3 B through ssh on the same wifi server.
Concussion sensor inside helmet with the addition of on/off switch that allowed for charging of battery without removing it from the helmet.
After extensive testing with the Lausanne Collegiate School Varisty Football team and lengthy online research, I concluded that it would be next to impossible to produce a product that provided accurate readings of concussions without a full scale labratory to test impact forces and times. I could not accurately detect the timings of hits experienced with the onboard clock in the raspberry pi. I could not use accelerometers that had a higher gforce detection ceiling without creating my own libraries or switching to a different platform, which was outside of my ability.