(26 Aug 2015) On the Ivy League campus of Dartmouth College, even the football tackling dummies are smart.
Before the first practice of the season even got underway on Wednesday, the team already had declared an MVP _ two actually.
But in this case, MVP stands not for “Most Valuable Player” but for “Mobile Virtual Player,” a motorized, remote-controlled padded figure designed to allow players to make full contact while minimizing head and neck injuries.
The project started two years ago when head football coach Buddy Teevens asked Dartmouth’s engineering school to create a safer way for players to practice tackling.
Students, some of them athletes themselves, came up with a motorized system encased in foam that simulates a real football player in size, weight, agility and speed.
While there are similar tackling dummies that remain stationery or run along tracks elsewhere, Dartmouth officials say their product’s maneuverability and nimbleness sets it apart.
The project is part of a movement to try to make contact sports safer.
Concern about concussions is growing amid headlines about former professional players who suffered long-term impairment after repeated blows to the head.
Dartmouth says the dummies cost about $3,500 to manufacture. Researchers have a patent pending and are developing a business plan to market it to pro, college, high school and youth teams.
Players who got their first look at the prototype Wednesday cheered as their teammates took turns tackling the dummies, which wobbled and bounced back up, ready for the next player.
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