AFL Extends Partnership with Brain Sentry

Wednesday March 11, 2015

 Brain Sentry helmet sensors to be used to help identify major head impacts

CHICAGO - Brain Sentry, a leading innovator in the field of wearable sensors, and the Arena Football League (AFL), which showcases a fast-paced and exciting game to millions of fans across the country, today announced the continued use of Brain Sentry sensors for all players as part of their landmark concussion safety protocol.

"The health and safety of our players is our highest priority," AFL Commissioner Scott C. Butera said. "Our partnership with Brain Sentry allows the League to be on the cutting edge of concussion research, protocol, and management."

Brain Sentry has emerged as the technological leader in the burgeoning helmet sensor market and its sensors are currently used by thousands of football, lacrosse and hockey players.

"We are honored to continue to provide our devices to the athletes who provide so much enjoyment to AFL fans," said Greg Merril, co-founder and CEO, Brain Sentry. "The successful use of this technology by the AFL, provides great opportunity for youth football organizations to learn about the value sensors provide in helping to manage concussion risk."

Brain Sentry has achieved quick success in the sensor market by creating a low cost and practical wearable impact sensor. According to Merril, an essential part of the company's success has been the development of a head impact monitoring subscription service that includes the simple-to-use sensor technology. Subscribers get replacement sensors each season, and with the advanced power management technology the sensor battery never needs to be recharged, and the sensor automatically turns itself on and off when it detects motion.

Merril added that a significant additional value of the subscription service is that Brain Sentry's researchers and engineers are constantly working to improve the usability and injury prediction capability of the sensor and Brain Sentry's customers get the benefit of the improvements when they become available.

Brain Sentry's sensors estimate direction, peak acceleration, and duration of impacts as experienced at the center (CG) of the head. Brain Sentry's sensor technology includes a triaxial accelerometer technology originally developed and patented at The Johns Hopkins University. The sensor is capable of measuring head acceleration from any direction. Helmets provide varying levels of impact protection depending on the direction of the hit. Brain Sentry's proprietary, DASTM technology (Directionally Adaptive Sensing) is designed to provide a consistent alert level - independent of hit direction or helmet type.

The compact sensors weigh under two ounces, are waterproof and the batteries last all year without charging, meaning no maintenance by the athletes or staff. Brain Sentry sensors are made in the U.S. and easily affix to the outside of the helmet (on the back).

About Brain Sentry
Brain Sentry has a simple goal: to stop lives from being devastated by sports-related brain injuries. Named a Top Startup of the Year in 2013 by The Wall Street Journal, Brain Sentry is privately held and headquartered in Bethesda, MD. The company was founded by a team of award-winning health-related product developers who have continued to win accolades; the Brain Sentry Impact Sensor was named Best Tech Product of the Year by Baltimore Innovation Week. Featured on The Today Show and Good Morning America, Brain Sentry is the official sensor provider for the Arena Football League. Brain Sentry's initial focus is to provide sensors for the most popular helmeted contact sports, and it serves a growing number of football, lacrosse, and hockey leagues, teams and players. In December 2014, Brain Sentry, Inc. acquired from Johns Hopkins University an exclusive license for US Patent No. 5,978,972. This patent represents a pivotal enabling concept for wearable sensors in that it describes the use of accelerometers attached to a body part to measure acceleration during physical activity. Brain Sentry is also developing sensors for biking, alpine, and other helmeted activities. Learn more at www.brainsentry.com.

About the AFL
Since its inception in 1987, the Arena Football League has showcased a fast-paced and exciting game to millions of fans in a myriad of markets across the country. The ESPN family of networks and CBS Sports Network will nationally broadcast AFL games each week for the entire 2015 season. This season will also be the first with Scott C. Butera leading the way as Commissioner. The AFL schedule culminates with ArenaBowl XXVIII Saturday, August 29, 2015 at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.