British engineers have designed a prototype for the world’s safest car seat, Carkoon. Carkoon uses pioneering airbag and GPS technology to protect children during car collisions.
This week British company Cool Technologies revealed the one-of-a-kind car seat that essentially wraps a child in a protective bubble in the event of a car crash.
Carkoon is a rear-facing infant carrier that employs the latest airbag technology, combined with high tech materials, and aims to offer increased protection against the effects of a crash and any subsequent vehicle fire. If you have a crash, it even calls the emergency services, letting them know exactly where the car seat is using GPS coordinates.
According to Daily Mail, the Carkoon is made out of kevlar, a high-strength, lightweight material, more commonly used on F1 racing cars than child car seats. In an accident, the seat deploys a Kevlar AirShield, which covers the entire seat in 50 milliseconds, effectively cocooning the child in a protective air pocket. The seat then automatically notifies emergency services of the seat’s location using GPS technology.
One of Carkoon’s best features is a small airbag that remains inflated in order to provide protection against the force of a crash. Once the air bag is in use it gives the child 20 minutes of air so it is able to stay alive until help arrives.
The Carkoon could go on sale as early as 2013 and will sell for about £499.
Sources: Daily Mail, WebWire.