Foldable Paper Helmet Wins Tech Award

It’s not every day you find a paper helmet and it’s even rarer to find a foldable paper helmet made of recyclable materials. The eco-friendly helmet was made by designer Isis Shiffer has won the James Dyson Award and will receive £30,000 funding to further improve on the design.

“When I was exploring new cities I had no access to a helmet and I didn’t want to spend $30 buying one,” she told the BBC.

The helmet uses a honeycomb structure to protect the head which, and is “incredibly good at absorbing impact”.

The design was tested at Imperial College in London.

“They have a test rig for helmets and the professor in charge of the lab let me test out a lot of materials. It turns out it was a lot of fun. There is a frame with an anvil on the bottom and an accelerometer to measure speed and impact,” explained Ms Shiffer.

“It is so solid and everyone who had held it in their hands is surprised about how solid it is,” she said.

The helmet is also rain resistant for between three to four hours.