Prototype helmet airbag – looking for rider feedback

[Evaldas]

Hey everyone,

A small team of us has spent the past year hacking on a helmet-integrated air-inflation liner [for neck protection. The aim: fully deploy in < 100 ms when onboard sensors plus ML-based crash patterns scream “unrecoverable.”
Where we’re at
Data-collection phase – logging real-world riding hours to prototype the trigger
algorithm.
Sensor composition & electronics design.
Attachment design – working on a universal, flexible mount so the liner fits
multiple helmet shells.

What we’d love feedback on
Comfort / weight limits you’d realistically tolerate inside a lid.
Crash scenarios that defeat current airbag vests (so we can test against them).
Test protocols or standards you trust for validating deployment speed &
reliability.

Just sanity-checking the concept with real riders. Tear it apart now so we can fix it before tooling.
Thanks for the brain-cycles!

— Evaldas

[stinkwheel]

I for one wish people would spend as much time and effort as they spend researching and designing electronic gizmos into making a helmet visor you can actually see through in all weathers.

I feel this would be a great aid to rider safety and comfort. Avoiding a crash is better than making one more survivable.

And no, a pinlock doesn't do this, I've tried several in several different helmets and have landed up taking them out of all of them because in truly foul conditions, they make things worse.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[WD Forte]

The linked website kinda reminds of the ReynePal saga we had a while back with its false promises, pretty pictures, 'pre orders' for no actual product, no company info, prices or traceable addresses.
All bollocks really .
It all came to nothing but we did have fun taking the piss out of it
for a while.
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bikers smell of wee

[Ste]

I tried to pre order and I tried to join the community but neither is possible.

"At ItaroBlu, we're riders first, engineers second"

Ok but how many connections have you got on linkedin?

[Polarbear]

[Copycat73]

chindogu
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Whatever I post I have no citation and no intention of providing one..
caveat emptor

[WD Forte]

For ignorant peasants like me who had no idea what chindogu meant

"Chindogu, a Japanese term, refers to "unuseless" inventions: quirky, whimsical gadgets designed to solve everyday problems but which are ultimately impractical or even counterproductive. These inventions are not meant for actual use, but rather for humorous or satirical commentary on the nature of consumerism and the pursuit of convenience.
"
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bikers smell of wee

[Kawasaki Jimbo]

Why would you integrate such a device into a helmet when a jacket or collar would suffice?
I can see it exploding out and lifting my head off.

[Robby]

I can think of many scenarios where this would cause more harm than good. I can see fewer scenarios where it would help.

The idea would be that the airbag deploys when my neck is being twisted far enough to cause damage. The airbag would have to deploy to stop my neck being bent any further. However, if it introduces any force between neck and shoulders, it's going to either try to rip my head off my shoulders, or tilt my head back so rapidly that I'm going to get hurt even more. The chin strap is not my friend in this scenario.

Any sort of improper or accidental deployment is going to make things worse.

So you're probably better looking at minimal shoulder and neck airbags for jackets. Something that could deploy enough to prevent a really extreme angle breaking my neck, but wouldn't get in the way at all if it deployed accidentally while I'm riding normally.

None of this will help with any kind of twisting action. I'm still dead if that happens.

[Evaldas]

Thanks for your responses,

I see the concern of the airbag being too big and causing stress to the shoulders or pulling the helmet off the head. The key functionality of the neck airbag is to prevent the neck hyperflexion and hyperextension. The airbag would need to occupy only the necessary space between bottom of the helmet and the shoulders to achieve the desired partial neck freedom restriction.

In other words, the airbag does not have to be squeezed between helmet and shoulders to secure the neck.

[Kawasaki Jimbo]

So why would you add weight and complexity to a helmet (which supposedly has a 5-year life span, although I ignore that) when a jacket or collar-mounted device does the job?

[Evaldas]

The main idea is to make the neck protected in all the cases just as the head is (assuming one always wears a helmet). Product would mostly appeal to the riders who did not invest in inflatable vests, or for the cases when one would not wear an airbag vest (we hear that sometimes the temperature is too high, or the ride is too short to put on the airbag jacket).

Regarding the convenience, we aim to fit under 250g (8.818 oz), which attached to the bottom rim of the helmet would not raise helmet's center of mass.

We are working on the universal clipping design that would fit most full face helmets when set up, so that one could swap it between helmets daily if desired.

[A100man]

what happens if you drop your helmet?
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Now: A100, GT250A, XJ598, FZ750

Then: Fizz, RS200, KL250, XJ550, Laverda Alpina, XJ600, FZS600

[Evaldas]

Algorithmic crash detection algorithm (research topic active since 2013) would allow to determine whether the rider is driving and at what speed. That is done by measuring the forces acting on the rider. Standing still, unmounting, walking or helmet placed still can be detectable states that would prevent airbag triggering for the cases like this.

[jeffyjeff]

Dude. Do you really think that you can develop and produce an aftermarket helmet airbag that is unobtrusive, safe, and functional, and that you can manufacture and sell it in sufficient quantities to be profitable? To people like us? That is a hell of a gamble. Many, if not most of us are on the downhill side of middle age, and we've made it this far without utilizing airbag technology. Many of us regard your device as a gimmick.

Maybe you should contact the Ministry of Transport. Write some letters, circulate some petitions, get Elon to buy in. Convince the Ministry of Transport to mandate helmet neck airbags to all new helmets sold in UK.

If you can do that, you'll be set for life.
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History shows again and again how nature points out the folly of men - BOC

[yen_powell]