Firstly I am long time reader and follower of the forum and I shamelessly admit I registered to start this thread but I do hope to contribute to the forum as a bike fan from here on also.
So if you'll pardon me......
Can I ask any city / street cyclists here the following:
I have designed and patented a very simple idea for for a device that fits onto the rear of your bike (anywhere) which is
almost like a parking sensor in the rear of your car.
It is designed with cycling safety in mind.
Basically the premise is that when you are riding to work/into town etc. on a narrow bike lane (let's face it many are inadequate and not with our best interests / safety in mind) and you get someone up behind you trying to pass, it can be super dangerous,
1. because you can't hear him/her coming 2. because there are cars/buses/vans/trucks whizzing by within inches almost at times
and 3. if you were to swerve for any reason to avoid a pothole or obstacle in your path or puddle of water etc. you could cause a collision with the person passing.
Now some clever folk wear little rear view mirrors on their helmets but then not everyone wears helmets, it's not compulsory by law in most countries I know of. And then you have the people who just wouldn't anyway because it doesn't look cool or whatever.
I came up with this idea after I myself got involved in a minor road collision as a result of straying ever so slightly into someones path unknowingly and both of us ended up on a heap and fortunately not underneath the wheels of a passing car.
So fundamentally my idea is for a warning system, when another bike comes within 5-10 metres of yours my device (compact/smaller than a common rear bike light/can fit to any part of the frame or rear) sends a signal to a led displayer which is
on your handlebars, again small, lightweight, but sturdy, which indicates to the rider that you have someone on your tail -
for want of a better phrase.
Feel free to rubbish it and tell me I'm nuts but I am just putting it out there, I believe it could be a very important device and could help save accidents and perhaps even lives.
Also the device may also emit a beeping sound if you so desire. You get people listening to ipods now (crazy I know) on their bikes
who are in their own world, if they won't wear a helmet at least they might fit a small and funky device which can at least make them aware that there are other cyclists in proximity before they make a manouevre.
Everyone cycles, children, teenagers, professional adults, OAPS, and within those groups you get people moving at different speeds and in different manners with their own interpretation of how they should behave on their bike.
I feel if my product idea was a success and was commonly used it would be used by people of all age groups.
I don't have pictures to display as I am still working on finalising my prototype and I am sure you will have questions as to how it might work and the possible problems it might encounter but suffice to say I have been working on this for some time and trust me when I say I wouldn't be here proposing it to you if I didn't think it could be done.
So I would really appreciate some feedback if anyone has a moment to spare- do you think this is a good idea?
If you could add to it or modify it what would you suggest?
Fundamentally the idea is to aid cyclists awareness of those around them in a simplistic and none too distracting way.
Thank you for reading.
So if you'll pardon me......
Can I ask any city / street cyclists here the following:
I have designed and patented a very simple idea for for a device that fits onto the rear of your bike (anywhere) which is
almost like a parking sensor in the rear of your car.
It is designed with cycling safety in mind.
Basically the premise is that when you are riding to work/into town etc. on a narrow bike lane (let's face it many are inadequate and not with our best interests / safety in mind) and you get someone up behind you trying to pass, it can be super dangerous,
1. because you can't hear him/her coming 2. because there are cars/buses/vans/trucks whizzing by within inches almost at times
and 3. if you were to swerve for any reason to avoid a pothole or obstacle in your path or puddle of water etc. you could cause a collision with the person passing.
Now some clever folk wear little rear view mirrors on their helmets but then not everyone wears helmets, it's not compulsory by law in most countries I know of. And then you have the people who just wouldn't anyway because it doesn't look cool or whatever.
I came up with this idea after I myself got involved in a minor road collision as a result of straying ever so slightly into someones path unknowingly and both of us ended up on a heap and fortunately not underneath the wheels of a passing car.
So fundamentally my idea is for a warning system, when another bike comes within 5-10 metres of yours my device (compact/smaller than a common rear bike light/can fit to any part of the frame or rear) sends a signal to a led displayer which is
on your handlebars, again small, lightweight, but sturdy, which indicates to the rider that you have someone on your tail -
for want of a better phrase.
Feel free to rubbish it and tell me I'm nuts but I am just putting it out there, I believe it could be a very important device and could help save accidents and perhaps even lives.
Also the device may also emit a beeping sound if you so desire. You get people listening to ipods now (crazy I know) on their bikes
who are in their own world, if they won't wear a helmet at least they might fit a small and funky device which can at least make them aware that there are other cyclists in proximity before they make a manouevre.
Everyone cycles, children, teenagers, professional adults, OAPS, and within those groups you get people moving at different speeds and in different manners with their own interpretation of how they should behave on their bike.
I feel if my product idea was a success and was commonly used it would be used by people of all age groups.
I don't have pictures to display as I am still working on finalising my prototype and I am sure you will have questions as to how it might work and the possible problems it might encounter but suffice to say I have been working on this for some time and trust me when I say I wouldn't be here proposing it to you if I didn't think it could be done.
So I would really appreciate some feedback if anyone has a moment to spare- do you think this is a good idea?
If you could add to it or modify it what would you suggest?
Fundamentally the idea is to aid cyclists awareness of those around them in a simplistic and none too distracting way.
Thank you for reading.