fairfolio
Saved Projects

What Type of Shin Guard Is the Best at Preventing Soccer Related Tibia Fractures?

CSEF · 2002 Applied Mechanics/ Structures & Mechanisms/ Manufacturing

Nicholas J. Hennrikus · Valley Oak Elementary, Fresno

Overview

Objectives/Goals My project was to determine what property of the shin guard best prevents tibia fractures. Methods/Materials I chose four commercial shin guards of varied padding and hard coverings plus a self made shin guard. I constructed model legs using boards 1 inch thick by 2.5 inches wide, stuffing and a stocking. I covered the leg with the different shin guards and dropped different weights from progressive heights, calculating the force and kinetic energy of the falling weights and documenting fracture incidence. Results I found that the one inch foam padding prevented the most fractures, preventing fractures up to 24.6 joules of energy. Those shin guards that were composed mostly of hard plastic performed the worst, allowing fractures at 20.0 joules of energy. Conclusions/Discussion I concluded that the shin guard with the most padding was the most effective at preventing fractures. My initial hypothesis that the biggest and heaviest shin guard (Umbro) would prevent the most fractures was incorrect. I therefore recommend to parents and athletes that they purchase shin guards that have the most padding.

Summary statement

My project is about determining what properties a shin guard should possess in order to prevent tibia fractures.

Help received

My mom and dad helped me find the literature and helped me understand the physics behind the project. My brother helped me make charts and graphs on the computer. My teacher helped me organize my project and gave me tips on the presentation of the project.

Competition history

  • CSEF 2002 Applied Mechanics/ Structures & Mechanisms/ Manufacturing · Entry J0215

Resources

Related projects

Closest projects by meaning, across every fair and year in the corpus.

Browse more like this

Source: California Science & Engineering Fair public projects

Save projects to your library

Sign in with Google to keep track of projects you find interesting, organized into folders. An account also raises your daily allowance for “Has this been done?”, and lets you create a key for the MCP server with a much higher limit than anonymous use. Browsing stays public.

Continue with Google