Remember Hövding, the Swedish bike helmet released a few years back that looks like a stylish, poofy collar and supposedly inflates like an airbag upon impact? In a new video, the company explains more about how it works—claiming it’s actually much safer than a traditional helmet.
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While some think bike helmets are cool, there are others who worry about how it will mess with their hair and overall fashion. If you fall into the latter category, you might recall that a couple of years ago we reported on the Hӧvding inflatable bike helmet. In case you missed it and have no clue what we’re talking about, the Hӧvding is an inflatable bike helmet that you wear around your collar and will only activate and form a protective helmet around your head in the event of an accident. Otherwise it remains hidden in your collar which is why some consider it to be “invisible”, therefore solving the problem of helmet hair. (more…)
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Airbag Helmet looks silly but could help save lives, Google Maps gets more public transportation schedules worldwide,
People die trying to look cool. Vanity is the sad reason why people don’t wear bike helmets. So two Swedish women set out to invent “the invisible bicycle helmet”, They’ve succeeded, and the end product isn’t a made of clear plexiglass and there’s no lightbending-stealth technology. In fact it’s not really a helmet at all.
Hövding is a rapidly-inflating airbag that deploys from a collar around your neck when you’re in an accident. Here’s how it works, and a video demonstrating this amazing, but still expensive, invention.
The invisible bicycle helmet uses rechargeable battery-powered accelerometers and gyroscopes that detect the typical motions involved in a bike crash. They trigger a tiny gas inflator which instantly fills a nylon airbag with helium. The bag forms a hood around your head that cushions the impact of the street, a car, or anything else you slam into.
The product and company named Hövding began as the industrial design master’s thesis of two students, Anna Haupt and Terese Alstinat, at Sweden’s Lund University. After five years of research and $10 million in funding, they’re now selling the invisible bike helmet. It’s not cheap, though.
Hövding costs $600 and only works once. But considering the potential hospital bills, and you know, the risk of death, it might be a good investment for fashion-forward bikers. Really you should just be confident and realize that wearing areal bike helmet doesn’t make you uncool. But if that’s too much to ask, at least get a Hövding.
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