True to its status of being one of the stalwarts of automotive safety, Volvo has unveiled an innovative new product: an inflatable child seat. Although still in concept stage, this child seat merges practicality and ease of use.
The inflatable child seat concept is made such that when you don't need it, it can be deflated and carried in a small bag. When you want to use it, it can be inflated in under 40 seconds using the integrated pump.
The designer responsible for the seat, and Design Manager at Volvo Monitoring and Concept Centre (Los Angeles), Lawrence Abele, said, "For me child safety is always the number one priority and when we lived abroad with two toddlers we had to haul bulky child seats through airports and then into taxis. For many, traveling with young children is a challenge, any assistance to simplify the parents' life with young children is a great thing."
Anything else?
The concept, when put to production, will encourage the use of child seats, especially in places like rental cars, cabs and even buses, where people sometimes do without.
Tipping the scales at 5kg, the child seat is half the weight of conventional versions. Also, the seat is constantly online with the help of Bluetooth, which enables remote controlled inflation of the seat (we're not quite sure why, mind you).
The rear facing design of the seat helps prevent strain on a child's neck during a frontal impact on the vehicle.