The geeks are dominating today’s world as our lives revolve around latest technologies and gadgets. While technology has made our lives much easier and safer than ever before, it has reached a point where it is constantly acquiring more and more space in our daily routine, even while travelling.
Year 2014 saw the Skully AR-1 helmet making its debut. The first vertically integrated smart HUD motorcycle helmet was highly appreciated by the tech savvy riders. The helmet was designed with an integrated rear view camera system with a near 180 degree viewing angle that feeds video to the HUD embedded in the visor. The HUD displayed navigation, let you pair your smartphone to control the music, send texts, make calls, and change your destination on the go. That helmet is now available at a hefty price tag of USD 1,499 (over INR 1 lakh).
Click here to read complete details about the Skully AR-1
Fast forward to 2016 and the folks at Intelligent Cranium Helmets have introduced a new concept helmet, the iC-R, which does everything that the AR-1 can, and much more. The iC-R gets a dual HUD screens which streams real time video received from the two rear-view cameras. Apart from the rear view, the HUD screens can also be used to display functions such as navigation, weather reports, ride data, media libraries and communication from the connected devices.
The dual rear cameras have been designed to display a 210-degree view of the approaching traffic which reduces the blind spot and improves the safety especially while changing lanes. Other features include LED warning lights and integrated speakers. The open SDK framework allows custom functions which can be tailored to user’s preference. while the charging options include a power port on the back and an integrated solar panel.
Check out the complete features of the iC-R in this official video:
The helmet is still at the concept stage and Intelligent Cranium Helmets is gathering support for this product idea to fund the project. As the helmet is still in the concept form, there is no word about the pricing but we expect it to be north of USD 1,000. You can check out more details and latest developments on the official website here.
The effort by companies like Intelligent Cranium Helmets and Skully is commendable and the smart helmets are indeed a major leap into the future of motorcycling. But so much of information being displayed upfront may not be such a great idea as even slightest of distractions can result in a catastrophic event. And for most of us, motorcycling is a therapy and a way to disconnect with the world and the new smart helmets are just opposite of that. That being said, we are sure the tech savvy folks would like to have this new gadget in their collection.
Which side do you stand? Share your views about the smart helmets with us through the comments section below.
