Ford develops Smart Jacket to improve cyclist safety

Ford has developed clothing which has built-in indicators and flashing brake lights for cyclists. Smart Jacket was developed with urban cycling clothing specialist Lumo and mobility software company Tome, and allows cyclists to better indicate their presence and intentions to other road users. The wearable’s navigation app wirelessly connects to smartphones and vibrates the jacket’s sleeves to help riders take the right direction to avoid busy roads.
June 26, 2018 Read time: 1 min

278 Ford has developed clothing which has built-in indicators and flashing brake lights for cyclists.

Smart Jacket was developed with urban cycling clothing specialist Lumo and mobility software company Tome, and allows cyclists to better indicate their presence and intentions to other road users. The wearable’s navigation app wirelessly connects to smartphones and vibrates the jacket’s sleeves to help riders take the right direction to avoid busy roads.

It features audible interfaces and a system which allows cyclists to use bodily movements to take calls, receive messages and repeat navigation guidance.

The product is part of Ford’s Share The Road campaign, whose stated aim is fostering greater empathy between drivers and cyclists.

Ford is now applying for a patent to develop the prototype further.

Urban Traffic Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Manchester seeks smart but not selective transport solutions
    January 25, 2018
    Smarter transport relies on better communications both with travellers and between transport providers. Andrew Williams reports. Inrix’s prediction that the cost of traffic congestion will rise by 63% to £21bn per year by 2030 clearly illustrates that, in addition to the ongoing inconvenience and inefficiency, ongoing gridlock is a significant drain on the economy. It is against this backdrop that a Cisco-led consortium has launched CitySpire, a smart transport programme that uses location-based services a
    Read More
  • Google maps the future of traffic and travel information?
    March 16, 2012
    Will the relentless growth of Google lead to it becoming the ultimate provider of travel information services? Huw Williams investigates Google’s strategy and David Crawford discovers what two principal rivals are doing to keep pace. In the first weeks of 2012 one company staked two divergent claims on the future of transport. One is the science fiction of only a decade ago, turned into reality: the driverless car. The other seems more prosaic, yet in its own way is just as significant a marker of the futur
    Read More
  • University data experts team up with local company to improve road safety
    June 20, 2017
    Data analytics experts at Queen’s University Belfast have teamed up with local company See.Sense to create an intelligent bike light, which they say could help to improve road safety.
    Read More
  • Syracuse models post-industrial revival for US cities
    August 13, 2015
    A connective corridor in Syracuse, New York State, could be a model for other post-industrial cities, as David Crawford discovers. The aim of the city of Syracuse’ 5.6km-long Connective Corridor in Onandaga County in upstate New York is to create a model ‘complete street’ for use in wider regeneration schemes. Key transport-sector components are traffic calming, high-quality transit with accessible passenger information, plus walkability and bike-friendliness.
    Read More

Highlighted Content