A cycle helmet developed by Volvo to warn when a vehicle is too close to a cyclist is being showcased this week at the International CES in Las Vegas (6-9 Jan) (BBC News).
The helmet also alerts cyclists if they are in a vehicle’s blind spot to enable them to take action to avoid a collision.
The technology, developed by Volvo Cars, the sports gear manufacturer POC and Ericsson, comprises a helmet prototype that establishes two-way communication offering proximity alerts to Volvo drivers and cyclists.
Volvo says this is the first time a car manufacturer has “put a stake in the ground to help address the problem by using connected safety technology”.
The helmet uses a smartphone app to track the location and speed of a cyclist. This information is shared with any Volvo vehicles nearby that are equipped with the firm’s City Safety* system. This alerts drivers to the presence of a cyclist even if the rider is in a blind spot or when visibility is poor.
The system calculates potential trajectories of both bicycle and car and warns when a collision is imminent. It can also take control of a car to apply brakes if it gets too close to a cyclist. Drivers will be alerted via the car’s head-up display and the rider will be warned through a light mounted on the helmet.
Klas Bendrik, Volvo Cars, said: “By exploring cloud-based safety systems we are getting ever closer to eliminating the remaining blind spots between cars and cyclists and by that avoiding collisions.”
Volvo’s City Safety system – standard on the all-new XC90 models – is a technology that can detect, warn and auto-brake to avoid collisions with cyclists. It has paved the way for the innovative helmet technology concept, currently being presented at the International CES 2015.