An Investigation of Transmission Range for an Instrumented Mouthguard Head Impact Telemetry System for Rugby Union

Concussions and sub concussive head impacts in contact sports have become a significant issue over the past two decades. The consensus in current literature is that large head impacts with high linear and rotational acceleration are the main cause of concussions in sport. Head impact telemetry (HIT) systems have been developed to measure and monitor the inertial loading of the head. HIT technology has now evolved so these systems can be worn by athletes in competition. There are currently very few validated HIT systems able to monitor player loads. Existing systems have been found to overestimate impacts, do not record in real-time or are not suitable to be used in non-helmet sports, such as rugby. The purpose of this study was to investigate the transmission range of the PROTECHT™ instrumented mouthguard under different conditions, to identify particular conditions that significantly affect signal quality. Head impacts were simulated using specialist software, on an instrumented mouthguard, under different conditions across two days of testing. Signal quality was evaluated under each condition. Standing and kneeling were found to have no significant effect on signal quality. However, lying prone on the ground did have a significant effect on signal quality. Under these conditions, there was a significant relationship between an increase in distance and an increase in packet loss, which was represented by a decrease in signal quality. This correlation holds when incorporating head direction and head orientation. This study highlights the importance of this investigation as the transmission range of PROTECHT™ head impact telemetry system is now known under the conditions investigated. The results reported in this study provide insight regarding conditions under which the system successfully transmits real time data and those where improvements will be required