Cushioning properties of convoluted foam

Convoluted polyurethane foam was tested for its cushioning ability in contr olled nl oy tests using a cushion tester: The purpose Of the tests teas to relate the peak acceleration transmitted to the falling weight to key geome tric features of the cushion, such as base thickness and area, along with f inger height and spacing. It was found that the fingers han the effect of r educing the impact velocity in a predictable manner, allowing the convolute d cushion to be treated as a block design so that published cushion curves for the same material could be used to obtain the peak acceleration . In ef fect, convoluted foam behaves like a block cushion of the size of its own b ase in a drop from a reduced height, the reduction being several times the finger height. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.