Smart helmets are populating the market. They all offer fancy features that seem to come straight out of science fiction movies — rear-view cameras and heads-up displays are but a couple of examples. Does this make motorcycle helmets better? Other featured crowdfunding projects: Nireeka electric bike: good-looking, affordable and smart N-Tech projector is smart, 4K-capable, and even does 3D! Muse Auto smartens your car with Alexa The Quintessential Design team doesn’t believe so. This type of technology is on its early stages, and hence not trustworthy. It hasn’t evolved enough to really offer an onslaught of features without distractions. Now, what is a helmet if not safe? In a phone interview with the Quin Helmet creator Anindith Reddy, we were told the team is not opposed to a heads-up display or other fancy elements, but they would prefer not to get involved until this technology has matured enough to keep users safe and the experience seamless. Much … [Read more...] about Quin Smart Motorcycle Helmets focus on safety, dump the bells and whistles
Motorcycle helmet safety
Comments for : Android based solution brings HUD GPS to motorcycle helmets
posted on 18 Jun 2013, 23:13 1 1. belovedson (Posts: 1060; Member since: 30 Nov 2010) sick i would definitely get this tech if i rode my bike more posted on 18 Jun 2013, 23:38 2 2. Reluctant_Human (Posts: 907; Member since: 28 Jun 2012) cool idea but it looks to obtrusive in the center. I would consider it if it were off center. posted on 19 Jun 2013, 00:33 4 3. SprintGuy26 (Posts: 229; Member since: 21 Mar 2011) i think if they added some solar panels to charge the battery since most bikers ride when its a nice day out..it wouldnt be hard to add this feature (maybe throw a few $$ my way for the idea lol)....also might i add that u make the visor bigger (wider and taller) for the person to see more and maybe put the GPS on the side instead of right in the middle? i know my thoughts dont really matter but would like to say its still cool posted on 19 Jun 2013, 00:40 1 4. Reluctant_Human (Posts: 907; Member since: 28 Jun 2012) I said the same thing about … [Read more...] about Comments for : Android based solution brings HUD GPS to motorcycle helmets
New motorcycle helmet makes wearing and removal a snap
Motorcycle helmets have evolved over the years to lightweight, technological marvels of safety. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), helmets are 37 percent effective in preventing motorcycle deaths and 67 percent effective in preventing brain injuries. However, the design structures of the helmets have remained mostly unchanged for quite a while. We still have four or five basic types, including the full face, open face or three-quarter, half, and modular helmets. For the most part, these helmets will not fit properly without a chin strap, and by design are loose in certain areas to allow the rider’s head to fit. One Australian company, Vozz Helmets, is aiming to expand the possibilities of helmet safety and design, right down to the way we put one on.Vozz’s Voztec System, as the company calls it, enjoys some advantages over traditional helmet design. The helmet operates with a rear opening hinge, allowing the rider to snap the helmet on … [Read more...] about New motorcycle helmet makes wearing and removal a snap
Want a HUD in your motorcycle helmet? Livemap survives where Skully crashed
One of the hottest trends in motorcycle gear today is the connected helmet. Once anathema to motorcyclists who treasured their rides as blissful solace from the intrusions of our increasingly high-tech world, connected helmets are finally becoming a thing. Resistance has slowly broken down as riders swapped earplugs for iPod earbuds, and eventually, earbuds for Bluetooth modules and speakers that add music, navigation (via voice prompt), and communication with their significant other (via smartphone) to their lids. Even bicycle helmet makers have gotten into the act.While motorcycle touring riders on glossy full-boat rigs like the Honda Goldwing and Harley Ultra Classic have used wired systems for intercom, CB, and music for decades, the rise of the multi-function wirelessly connected helmet is essentially as new as the smartphone.In 2013, two men started work on what they hoped would be revolutionary helmets with groundbreaking built-in technologies. Dr. Marcus Weller began work … [Read more...] about Want a HUD in your motorcycle helmet? Livemap survives where Skully crashed
Look like Halo’s Master Chief with this federally compliant motorcycle helmet
Updated on 02/18/2015: A full photo gallery and video were added, giving you a better idea of what the helmet will look like. The post was also updated to correct a factual inaccuracy: A reader correctly pointed out that the helmet isn’t approved for use by the federal government, it simply complies with safety guidelines laid out by the DoT. It’s an important distinction from the perspective of liability; the DoT doesn’t approve individual products, it just lays out the specs that safety-compliant products must conform to. Thanks for the heads-up!The distinctive helmet worn by Halo’s star space marine, Master Chief, has been produced as a replica many times over the years, but never as a proper piece of safety gear for motorcycle enthusiasts. Until now.Toys and collectibles manufacturer NECA is all set to start selling the Master Chief Modular Motorcycle Helmet, which complies with Department of Transportation safety specifications for street use. The … [Read more...] about Look like Halo’s Master Chief with this federally compliant motorcycle helmet
Does putting a display in a motorcycle helmet make you suicidal … or safer?
In an age where distracted driving is a daily headline and in-car tech seems to increase the distraction quotient with every model year, there’s one place where a pure focus on the road ahead seems to persist: on a motorcycle.But that experience is changing as well, as more riders put their lids on over their earbuds or take calls while riding with a new generation of Bluetooth-enabled helmets that pair with a smartphone. Of course, the next logical progression is the ability to view data in the helmet on either a device like Google Glass – or a Heads Up Display (HUD).Still, many riders treasure the temporary divorce from the ever-connected world while out riding, but a helmet maker in California thinks more tech in the helmet is a good thing – properly done, of course. Is he right?Marcus Weller rides a Ducati Monster and is also Chairman and CEO of Skully Helmets, which is close to beta testing a helmet called the P1 that features a built-in computer and heads-up … [Read more...] about Does putting a display in a motorcycle helmet make you suicidal … or safer?
Ride in style with the Master Chief motorcycle helmet
Coinciding with Microsoft’s E3 announcement of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, NECA has shared a first look at their Master Chief motorcycle helmet, coming in 2015. The video shows an early prototype sculpt, so particulars are of course subject to change. There have been plenty of replicas made of the Master Chief’s iconic helmet over the last decade, but to our knowledge this is the first one actually engineered to the rigorous safety standards required for a working motorcycle helmet. Now you just need to get started on modding your bike to look like a ghost so you can win Comic Con with the most dramatic cosplay entrance. Editors' Recommendations Want to keep your home spotless? The Ecovacs M80 Pro robotic vacuum can help ‘Cuphead’ Review His father did it with sitar, but Dhani Harrison proves EDM can heal, too The StarkBoard is a hands-free, remote-free eboard for your outdoor adventures Master ‘Assassin’s Creed … [Read more...] about Ride in style with the Master Chief motorcycle helmet
Vicis Zero1 outperforms competing smart helmets in NFL/NFLPA safety tests
The sport of football is increasingly under scrutiny for its high risk of brain injury from repeated concussions. After years of denial, the NFL acknowledged this risk and started funding research that will produce technology to reduce the risk of concussions. One company, Seattle-based Vicis, used this windfall to develop the Zero1, a football helmet designed to absorb an impact and bounce back much like a car bumper. The technology is so effective against impacts that the Zero1 ranked highest in a recent NFL/NFL Players Association Helmet Laboratory performance test that evaluated 33 of the best helmets available.The Zero1 uses a multi-layer design that is finely tuned for the impact types and velocities observed in professional football. The helmet has an impact-absorbing layer comprised of a series of columns that flex in response to an impact regardless of its angle or location. Because of their arrangement, these columns can absorb both linear and rotational impacts. This inner … [Read more...] about Vicis Zero1 outperforms competing smart helmets in NFL/NFLPA safety tests
The harder you fall, the better Leatt’s new All Mountain bicycle helmet works
We all know bicycle helmets are there to protect our head and brain — and new technology is helping to make them increasingly effective at doing just that. Along those lines, Leatt has created an innovative new safety innovation with its 2017 All Mountain bicycle helmet.There is more to protect against than just impact. Equally important is reducing the brain’s momentum during said impact. To that end, this helmet features what Leatt is calling 360-degree Turbine Technology.Spaced strategically throughout the helmet’s lining are little turbines made out of a rubber-like material called armourgel. Unlike rubber, armourgel is specially designed to harden on impact. The shape of each turbine grants it some rotational properties. When the helmet is struck at an angle, the turbines stretch and rotate to reduce the forces on the head.“The faster or harder you fall, the better it works,” according to Leatt.If a cyclist were to crash, the … [Read more...] about The harder you fall, the better Leatt’s new All Mountain bicycle helmet works
High-tech Skully helmet: A Google Glass that’s born to be wild
SAN FRANCISCO -- The scariest thing about riding a motorcycle is the cars and trucks. To help riders deal with big, boxy, and often lethal vehicles, the Skully P1 motorcycle helmet sticks a Google Glass-style heads-up display, rear-view camera, and Bluetooth in the helmet. But isn't that tech more distracting and dangerous?It's hard to imagine how hurtling yourself at freeway speeds down the road while dealing with what appears to be a Google Glass knockoff is a safe way to get wherever you're going. It sounds extremely cool, and ridiculously dangerous. How can you pay attention to cars zipping about you, sometimes within inches of killing you, while flipping your eyes around to focus on a clear plastic box at the bottom of your field of vision?That's what I was considering on Thursday in the bright noontime sun as I slid on the Skully P1 and gently wiggled my glasses back into the helmet, one of three prototypes in existence. … [Read more...] about High-tech Skully helmet: A Google Glass that’s born to be wild