Hoopdriver

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/technolo...g-for-cyclists

Similar principle to the self-inflating PFD I wear when sailing. Looks comfortable enough, and it works to protect the demonstrator riding at 2 mph hitting a rubber mat. Would it provide any advantage under real collision circumstances, though.

jon c. 

Looks like it might work better as a PFD than to protect a cyclist in a crash. I would think the torso is least in need of protection.

genec

Head and torso are the critical areas... especially organs and spine.

Don't know how well it would work however in a high speed collision... such as being struck from behind by a high speed vehicle, or where a motorist fails to stop at a cross street.

jon c. 

But is the torso often injured in bike accidents in the manner that device would protect against? I guess my initial reaction was motivated by the manner in which the crash test dummy hit the vehicle. Seemed unlikely such a crash would really end in you striking the vehicle in that manner, which left me thinking the thing would protect in a only a relatively narrow set of circumstances.

BobbyG

adablduya

this is waaaay over the top. while we're at it, let's have cyclists wear padded leathers and boots (with recesses for cleats, of course...). and a full helmet. face shield optional.

eugew23

I'd rather break an arm than a few ribs so it doesn't seems too bad.

Bmach

Hoopdriver

PFD's are designed to float you face up. Although this may keep you afloat, it's not a reliable water safety device.

I was unaware that there were vest air bags available for motorcyclists for a number of years. This whole body suit thing looks interesting:

Bmach

Daniel4

I guess it would be easier to bubble wrap all pedestrians and cyclists than to get drivers to drive safely.

Maelochs

Speaking as a rider who used to crash a lot because he was young and dumb and over-enthusiastic and refused to believe he could sustain permanent injury (until I did):

Okay. First of all the guy is not clipped in.

I rode flat pedals for almost 15 years of harsh urban commuting and they most decidedly saved me many, many times. When one is clipped in one cannot do a break-fall or a dive-and-roll. That guy did a full twist to land on his back—easy enough because he was going slowly and planning the maneuver the whole time.

I have done the same thing when crashing at speed without warning … but I used to do a little martial arts, which doubtless helped.

Most riders ride with clips, so the whole crash dynamic is completely different--making both demonstrations irrelevant.

Most injuries in bike crashes are Not from flat impacts to the torso—the torso is only liable to puncture or crushing if one falls on the bike, or a curb or something else protruding. Falling flat like he did is one of the best possible outcomes in a crash. He didn’t need the airbag—and he should have slapped out with his arms.

Most injuries in bike wrecks are (from impacts) broken legs, etc when a hood or fender strikes someone who cannot get off the bike—or from crashing, to the head, collarbones, and extremities (wrists, hands) when the person slams down sideways. This thing would be useless in all those instances.

Also … who needs protection from two-mph crashes? If I am going to wear hot, sweaty armor and protection devices, they had better protect me from the real stuff—minimum 15-mph crashes, and 15–45-mph car impacts.

You know what else is funny? In the slow-mo version of the crash, he put his hand out to help him fall. Despite Knowing he was going to fall, he couldn’t manage to do it right. If he had been doing real riding speed—say, 12–20 mph—he would have snapped his wrist and or his collarbone, and his airbag would have been a bag of hot air.

He also dropped to his knee first—Ouch. At speed he would have simply ripped his kneecap off.

Even more important, if he had fallen hard and fast, instead of breaking his fall with his leg and arm, likely his airbag wouldn’t have been fully inflated.

Also, if you look at the staged crash with the dummy (the inanimate one) the dummy would have been crippled by the stem hitting his intestines. Thea face-first impact on the car;’s hood would have smashed the nose or at high speed, possibly snapped the neck. The airbag would have been useless anyway, because the body, hitting flat on the hood, would have served to dissipate energy, and in that kind of flat impact, with nothing to penetrate, potential for injury is low.

So, in their two staged crashed, we see one complete failure which would have resulted in broken bones at least at real riding pace, and in the other, complete failure as the rider would have had a ruptured spleen or punctured intestines. This “safety device” did not increase safety in either of its staged, planned demonstrations.

Basically, these guys had a chance to show how excellent their product was and couldn’t.

This looks like a product engineered by engineers who didn’t seriously cycle, or maybe people who thought that “cycling” was occasionally riding a rent-a-citibike unsteadily into pedestrians on a sidewalk.

Usefulness for most riders? Less than zero.

Daniel4

Something like this would make better use of airbags.

https://www.google.com/search?q=aerodynamically+enclosed+bicycle&oq=aerodynamically+enclosed+bicycle&aqs=chrome..69i57j33.1 4297j0j7&client=ms-android-lge&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=fuY8QQfo-l--EM: