In addition to the inflatable cushion system, the HOPS system includes Horton’s new progressive resistance headrests at all squad bench and CPR seating positions. While traditional foam padding feels quite soft, tests show that severe headstrikes are transmitted completely through the foam padding, literally “bottoming out” on the mounting surface and offering very little protection.
Progressive resistance dissipates the energy throughout a laminated protective surface to eliminate the bottoming effect and offer additional protection much like that provided by high impact sports and racing helmets. Numerous combinations and materials were evaluated using high tech cannon fires at the test laboratory.
An air cannon is used to test Horton's multi-density cushion.