Cyclist safety system alerts HGV drivers

Developed by UK vehicle safety specialists Sentinel Systems, the Bike Hotspot is designed to reduce the number of accidents involving cyclists and commercial vehicles. The system is designed to sense when a cyclist is within the blind spot of a large vehicle and alert both driver and cyclist.
May 11, 2015 Read time: 2 mins

Developed by UK vehicle safety specialists 8094 Sentinel Systems, the Bike Hotspot is designed to reduce the number of accidents involving cyclists and commercial vehicles. The system is designed to sense when a cyclist is within the blind spot of a large vehicle and alert both driver and cyclist.

It comprises four of Sentinel’s safety aids including a front corner system, side scan system, side camera and an external sounder and can be customised to meet the needs of the vehicle and the driver. External scanning sensors are fitted along the nearside and front corner of the vehicle, linked to an internal audio warning to alert the driver when there is a potential hazard. An external alert is also sounded to warn the cyclist or pedestrian that the vehicle is turning left.

The cameras are connected to an internal monitor inside the cab so that the driver is visually aware of any cyclists, while the scanners are programmed to detect cyclists at a particular distance and height to avoid sensing cars or pedestrians that are not at risk. A controller area network bus module has also been incorporated to ensure that the system is only activated when the vehicle is manoeuvring at a speed below 10mph.

Urban Traffic Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Vision technology lifts blinkers from tunnel vision
    December 6, 2017
    Sony’s Jerome Avenel looks at how advances in imaging technology are helping improve safety. On the 24th March 1999, a Belgian truck transporting flour and margarine through the 11.6km Mont Blanc tunnel caught alight when a cigarette stub entered the engine induction snorkel, lighting the paper air filter. The fire left over 30 dead and many more injured. At the time, the Mont Blanc tunnel disaster was the world’s worst tunnel fire.
    Read More
  • Substantial savings from smarter street lighting
    February 25, 2015
    As authorities strive to reduce expenditure and carbon emissions, Colin Sowman looks at some of the smart ways of managing street lighting while containing costs and maintaining safety. Street lighting can account for 40% of an authority’s energy consumption. So, faced with the need to reduce outgoings, some authorities are looking for smart ways of managing street lighting or even turning off swathes of street lights in the small hours. Back in 2008 the E-street Initiative report concluded that authorities
    Read More
  • Dutch launch intelligent cycle
    December 17, 2014
    The Netherlands on Monday launched its first-ever ‘intelligent bicycle, fitted with an array of electronic devices to help bring down the high accident rate among elderly cyclists in the cycle-mad country. Developed for the government by the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), the intelligent bicycle prototype runs on electricity, and sports a forward-looking radar mounted below the handlebars and a camera in the rear mudguard.
    Read More
  • The Asia-Pacific poses a multitude of ITS challenges
    May 30, 2014
    The Asia-Pacific ITS Forum and Exhibition in Auckland, New Zealand, provided a focus for the region’s ITS Associations. Mary Bell reports. In late April, ITS New Zealand hosted the 13th Asia-Pacific ITS Forum and Exhibition in Auckland. Around 350 delegates from 24 nations gathered to share and advance ITS applications on both strategic and technical levels and to discuss the differing and various challenges faced in the region.
    Read More

Highlighted Content