Accidents
Motorcycle brake lighting system doesn't care how you're slowing down
California-based engineer Faizal Ali was riding his motorcycle on a San Diego freeway one day and downshifted in order to slow for an exit. Because he didn’t actually apply the brakes, however, his brake light didn’t come on. As a result, the following car almost ran into him. That experience prompted him to partner with Jesse Szynal and designer Fausin Mdisa to create Vololights – it’s a rear lighting system that activates no matter what method the rider is using to decelerate. Read More
While we hear a lot about the ways in which hovering aerial drones can potentially be used to violate peoples’ privacy, it’s always nice to know that they can help us, too. That was the case last Thursday (May 9th), when RCMP from the Canadian city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan used a remotely-operated quadcopter to locate the victim of a single-vehicle rollover, which occurred in the countryside at near-freezing temperatures. Read More
Some drivers still refuse to wear seatbelts on the grounds that they "can get stuck in the car if it becomes submerged in water or catches on fire." For those people, there's now a new product called the GDC Hook Knife – it's designed to sit on a keychain, and can be used to remove a seatbelt in seconds. Read More
Starting this summer (Northern Hemisphere), the Japanese-market version of the Honda Fit/Jazz will be offered with the automaker’s new City-Brake Active System. It’s designed to minimize the chances of collisions at low speeds. Read More
LCC details bike-friendly Safer Urban Lorry design
According to the London Cycling Campaign (LCC), though only five percent of all motor traffic in the UK's capital are lorries (trucks), they account for half of all cycling deaths in the Greater London area. Last November, the group launched its Safer Lorries, Safer Cycling campaign – which calls on councils to take a pledge that insists on cyclist-aware training for drivers and the use of the latest safety technology in all council-operated lorries and for all lorry contractors. Now LCC has released details of a lorry design overhaul that helps make cyclists more visible to drivers, while also lowering the chances of a rider being dragged underneath the wheels. Read More
Any motocross racer knows how important it is to wear a helmet. In order for a helmet to withstand high-speed impacts, however, its ability to soak up low-speed impacts is somewhat compromised ... and low-speed impacts, even though they don’t sound quite so nasty, can still cause concussions. The ATR-1 helmet by 6D uses a series of elastomer shock absorbers to handle those hits, while reportedly still providing adequate protection against the big ones. Read More
According to a recent study by the American Automobile Association, seven out of ten drivers admit to text messaging while driving. Combine that with a study by Virginia Tech, which concluded that texting drivers are 23.2 times more likely to be involved in an accident, and you begin to see how big of a problem it is. ORIGOSafe is one of the latest products designed to stop texting-and-driving – it won’t let your car start unless your phone is plugged into the device. Read More
Besides continuing to produce its high-end protective body armor, Dainese has also spent the last several years developing something else – a wearable airbag system for motorcyclists. A couple of years ago, the Italian company announced that it had entered into a partnership with the International Ski Federation, to adapt that system for use by downhill ski racers. Now, Dainese has announced that it is fine-tuning the ski system, for use in the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics. Read More
Kranium cardboard bicycle helmet now available for purchase
Just last month, we told you about the Kranium – a prototype bicycle helmet with a core made from cardboard instead of the usual expanded foam. Well, we obviously weren’t the only ones impressed by it. German security devices manufacturer Abus has picked up the design, resulting in the Kranium AKS 1 helmet now being available in the UK. Read More
Industrial and medical accidents have resulted in about 3,000 cases of acute radiation syndrome with over 100 deaths over the past 60 years. Far larger numbers are possible in the future from major reactor accidents or the use of dirty bombs. In the aftermath of a major incident, the radiation dosages of victims must be sorted out quickly, so that suitable treatment can begin as soon as possible. Medical researchers at the US Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have now developed a simple blood test to determine the exposure of a patient to ionizing radiation, that can be carried out in the field with a hand-held analyzer. Read More
