STOCKHOLM (BRAIN) — The Swedish protective gear maker POC is working with Sweden-based Volvo to create a new system that gives Volvo drivers alerts when approaching cyclists.
"Our partnership with Volvo is both humbling and rewarding, and aligns very well with our mission to do the best we can to possibly save lives and to reduce the consequences of accidents for gravity sports athletes and cyclists," said Stefan Ytterborn, POC's CEO and founder. "Our mutual view and focus on safety has resulted in a unique safety concept that can improve road safety through increased interaction between motorists and cyclists."
POC and Volvo Cars will introduce the new technology at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next month.
The system consists of a connected car and helmet prototype that establishes two-way communication with the aim of reducing accidents.
The system uses popular smartphone cycling apps like Strava to share the cyclist's position with the driver and vice versa. If an imminent collision is calculated, both road users will be warned. The Volvo driver will be alerted to a cyclist nearby through a heads-up display alert, even if the cyclist does not appear in view (e.g. behind a bend, another vehicle, or during low visibility). The cyclist will also be warned via a helmet-mounted alert light as well as vibration.
"The strategic partnership between Volvo, POC and Ericsson is an important milestone in investigating the next steps toward Volvo's goal to build cars that will not crash anymore," said Klas Bendrik, VP and Group CIO at Volvo Cars. "In 2013, Volvo was the first car manufacturer to introduce the Cyclist Detection System with fully automatic emergency braking in city traffic. And now with this innovative new technology, we are getting ever closer to eliminating the remaining blind spots between cars and cyclists forever."
