Body & Mind

Helmet-mountable ICEdot Crash Sensor calls for help if you can’t

Helmet-mountable ICEdot Crash Sensor calls for help if you can’t
The ICEdot Crash Sensor will be mountable on a helmet
The ICEdot Crash Sensor will be mountable on a helmet
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The ICEdot Crash Sensor will be mountable on a helmet
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The ICEdot Crash Sensor will be mountable on a helmet
The ICEdot Crash Sensor is expected to be similar to the ICEdot Snap seen here
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The ICEdot Crash Sensor is expected to be similar to the ICEdot Snap seen here
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A helmet might provide protection to the head in the event of an accident, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the wearer won’t be knocked unconscious or otherwise incapacitated. The ICEdot Crash Sensor pairs to a smartphone to automatically send a call for help, complete with GPS coordinates, when an accident is detected. The system also provides first responders with the accident victim’s medical information.

Unlike the similar VITAband that uses RFID technology, the ICEdot system consists of a slim sensor that can be mounted onto a helmet and pairs to a smartphone via Bluetooth low energy (BLE). When the sensor detects forces consistent with an accident, the smartphone app gives the user 30 seconds to shut down a countdown clock. If this timer is not canceled, the app will then send out a notification to all the user’s nominated emergency contacts, complete with GPS coordinates.

This level of separation between the app and emergency services, which lets a person's emergency contacts make the decision on whether the emergency services are required or not, prevents non-life-threatening impacts, such as dropping the helmet, from wasting the authorities’ time.

The ICEdot Crash Sensor is expected to be similar to the ICEdot Snap seen here
The ICEdot Crash Sensor is expected to be similar to the ICEdot Snap seen here

Not just for cyclists, the ICEdot Crash Sensor is aimed at snowboarders, skiers, mountain-bikers, or really anyone participating in risky activities that might take them off the beaten track.

The ICEdot Crash Sensor and accompanying app is expected to cost around US$200 when it is launched next year. The system also requires an annual subscription fee of $10 and is endorsed by the American Ambulance Association.

Source: ICEdot via GearJunkie

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5 comments
5 comments
The Hoff
I hope it beeps for the 30 seconds before it calls in case you drop the helmet.
Doug MacLeod
Nice idea, but what about all those parts of the world where there is no signal for your phone. I live on the Sustrans UK wide cycle network, but have no signal. Much of the UK is the same. A local doctor here was working on her house roof and slit an artery in her leg. She was found halfway to the road, smartphone in hand, dead.
Much of the UK is the same and it is down to government allowing telephone companies to "cherry pick" profitable areas with no obligation to cover the whole country. They do this as a bribe so that government can then charge a fortune for the operator licences. 3g licences cost the companies US$30 billion in the UK, so no money left for rural coverage.
Amir Cohen
There is already a working solution that does the same and for free: www.guardmyangel.com Guard My Angel is a geo-location personal safety application that utilizes the phone sensors to detect crash forces and alert your pre-selected contacts with the information they need to provide assistance. Moreover, before your head out you can set a timer for approximately how long the activity should take and when you're done you simply indicate that you're OK, If you don't you'r pre-selected contacts will also receive an alert. [Note that crash forces detection is currently available for the android version only, the iPhone version will support this in the near future] See a short intro video: http://youtu.be/oq-iCdrMFrg
Jonathan Gates
*Disclaimer* I work with the folks at ICEdot (great people by the way)
To those who like the product: Wanted to let you know that you can pre-order a sensor over at: http://indiegogo.com/icedot
There's even a cool video where you can see it in action.
To those who aren't quite sold on it: It may not keep you from being in a crash, but it just might save your life. It does more than just tell you how much shock your helmet took. It pairs with the ICEdot emergency service to notify your loved ones (via text, phone, and/or email).
It is also actually more than an accelerometer - it includes multiple accelerometers and gyroscopes and allows for better measurements and much smarter crash detection than a smartphone alone would allow. While you could use the accelerometer in a smartphone to measure sudden changes in speed, it would result in too many false positives to be useful.
stupidus
Doug: You can't have all. If you need the assurance that there's likely someone always near by to call for help, you must relocate to a city that will enable this. But I'm sure you already knew this.