Volvo is aiming to end the centuries-old war between vampires and werewolves... sorry; we mean cyclists and motorists, with new wireless cycle helmet technology.
According to data cited by the Swedish firm, half of all cyclists killed across Europe each year have been hit by a car, while there are nearly 50,000 cyclist fatalities and injuries in the US annually. So it is aiming to prevent collisions between cars and cyclists by using 'Connected Safety' wireless tech.
In a tie-up with protective gravity sports gear manufacturer, POC, and telecoms firm Ericsson, a connected car and helmet prototype establishes a two-way communication between car and bike. It uses a popular smartphone app for cyclists, like Strava, to pinpoint their exact position, and then share that data with the Volvo through cloud technology. The Volvo driver would be alerted of the cyclist's position - even if the cyclist is hidden by another vehicle, is round a corner or riding in low visibility conditions - through a head-up display, while a light would illuminate on the cyclist's helmet to warn them of a nearby car. The car would further auto-brake if a collision looks imminent.
Klas Bendrik, VP and group chief information officer at Volvo, said: "The partnership between Volvo Cars, POC and Ericsson is an important milestone in investigating the next steps towards Volvo Cars' vision to build cars that will not crash. But now, by exploring cloud-based safety systems, we are getting ever closer to eliminating the remaining blind spots between cars and cyclists and by that avoid collisions."
Anything else?
This new Volvo technology is going to be demonstrated the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, running from January 6-9.