Sharp-eyed MotoGP spectators will see a new AGV helmet in action this weekend at Misano in Italy – and it offers a glimpse of a possible safer future for every motorcyclist.
It’s the new AGV Pista GP3 and the standout feature is a detachable outer shell that claims to reduce risk of concussion by six times compared to a regular lid.
The system, developed by a British start-up company, is called AGV Sphera – Powered by RLS (Release Layer System).
RLS has already proven the concept in cycling helmets, and AGV are first to adopt it for motorcycling.
A second shell is attached over the helmet’s main shell, with hundreds of tiny ball bearings separating the two. In a glancing blow, the outer shell is able to rotate on the bearings and eventually detach, saving the head from being ripped into unwanted rotation.
In AGV’s photographs the extra layer is transparent, revealing the bearings that sit between that and the helmet’s main carbon-fibre shell.
With the racers’ helmets this weekend we’d expect the additional layer to be painted to fit in with their individual designs.
Photography: AGV
Scientists at RLS say the discovery of the concept was an accidental Eureka moment. When they were impact testing a cycle helmet for research, its shell spontaneously broke free of the helmet’s polystyrene impact liner.
The figures for rotational energy from that one impact were so impressive that the idea was born to build a helmet with a detachable outer shell.
Rotational energy has long been known to be a significant cause of brain injuries among motorcyclists, as glancing blows against the road or other obstacles make the brain rotate within the skull.
Protective systems within helmets, the best-known of which is MIPS, have already made in-roads into reducing the effect of such injuries.
But RLS say their system takes the protective level a step further, because their externally mounted system allows more movement than an internal feature such as MIPS.
AGV point to independent tests by the University of Zaragoza’s Aragon Research Institute, where they used impacts on the front and each side of the helmet to calculate the risk of a concussive injury.
Angel Sanchez, CEO of the Dainese Group that owns AGV, said: "We are proud to once again bring a revolution to the world of motorcycling, radically increasing the safety of our riders.”
The Sphera system is the most eyecatching development for the new Pista GP3, but there are other innovations.
Work in the wind tunnel has refined aerodynamic performance, especially while racers are cornering at high speed, and venting changes help expel more warm air through exhaust vents at the rear of the lid.
The visor and its mounting mechanism are also revised, with the visor itself now 5mm thick in key areas, and a stronger mounting keeping it closed during a crash.
Despite the revisions, AGV say the new lid is no heavier than the outgoing AGV Pista GP-RR race helmet.
The only thing that’s missing is any information on when the new helmet will filter down to those of us who don’t have a contract to race in MotoGP and its support classes.
AGV haven’t said when a Pista GP3 will become available to road and track riders, though it is certain there will be a future launch of this model. There's also no information on how much a Pista GP3 will cost when it is rolled out for the public.