The latest innovation comes from cycle gearmaker Alpinestars, with an evolution of its Tech-Air system. The creative solution puts the bag and all of its sensors in modular form into specially made jackets.
The Tech-Air airbag itself is in a mesh vest worn underneath one of the compatible jackets, and the system arms when the coat is zipped up. According to Alpinestars' website, the system takes 30-60 milliseconds to detect a crash and fully inflates in 25 milliseconds. Some of the development of the algorithms determining when a rider is an accident actually comes from MotoGP racing. European sales are slated to begin this spring.
Check out the video above for a demonstration of the safety tech in action on a live person and then in crash test. If you watch closely, you can actually see the moment the airbag inflates.
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