Thursday, June 5, 2014

Distant Early Warning: Approaching Vehicle Radar System For Cyclists.


In war, it was the artillery shell you never heard that got you.  While driving, it was the police car you never saw that pulled you over for speeding.  Similarly, while cycling, it was the car you never knew was there that plowed into you from behind.

Well, the clever minds over at Stellenbosch, South Africa, are actually doing something about the latter.  With their new vehicle detection system, they seek to give an added margin of safety out on the road by using radar to alert the rider of vehicles approaching from the rear.

The two piece system utilizes a bar mounted threat display and a rear facing red light.  The display alerts the rider to the presence of a vehicle and calibrates it's approach speed into a series of colored lights indicating the severity of the threat.  At the same time, the rear LED flashing light reacts by increasing its flash rate, again, depending on the perceived level of the threat.  Neat stuff. 

I think this device can have some real-world success, and they may indeed have a winner on their hands.  In addition to my question about the price, I wonder if it has an aural warning, as well?  One cannot spend their entire time staring at the light display, you know.

Read more at Bike Rumor.

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