Experimental Investigation and Safety Classification Evaluation of Small Drone Collision with Humans

Area of Science:

• Biomechanics
• Robotics
• Safety Engineering

Background:

• Human safety during drone collisions is a growing concern.
• Assessing injury risk from drone impacts requires standardized testing methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate head and neck injury risks from small drone collisions with a Hybrid III dummy.
• To develop predictive models for drone-related injury risk and establish safety classifications.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a vertical drop test platform for controlled drone-to-dummy head impact scenarios.
• Analyzed drone deformation, dummy head/neck dynamic responses, and injury metrics (HIC, head acc 3 ms, shear force, axial force, bending moment).

Main Results:

• Quantified the effects of drone type, drop height, and impact location on injury risk.
• Derived equations correlating head/neck injury metrics with drop height for specific drone models.
• Categorized safety grades for tested drones based on drop height.

Conclusions:

• The study provides crucial data and analytical methods for drone safety standards development.
• Predictive equations enable risk assessment for various drones and drop heights.
• A novel safety grading system for drone-human collisions is proposed.