About two months ago I decided to start researching the development of a radar system for bicyclists to help them gain more awareness while riding out on the road. I know for myself it's always a little jarring when a car goes whizzing past unexpectedly, And the number one cause of bicycle accidents is being hit from behind.
I spent the next couple of weeks putting together basic product feature requirements and meetings with engineering consultants. I don't have the expertise in radar technology required to make Velalert a reality, so I decided to hire Radicand, a design "collaboratory" and consulting firm, based in Redwood City, CA. They'll help determine the right radar technologies to use to provide the functional requirements and get functional prototypes up and running. We had our first meeting two weeks ago to discuss these functional requirements and some initial trade-off considerations associated with various radar options. We had our second meeting on Tuesday last week, and have settled on two different technologies to use for initial prototyping. We may ultimately build two different products based on how each of them turn out.
Once the ordered parts arrive, Radicand will start assembling the first iteration of the prototypes and I'm hoping to have one ready to strap onto my bike in a week or two! I'll put it through some user testing and we'll use the feedback to improve on the next iteration. One of the important considerations we're exploring in this first iteration (in addition to the radar technology) is the "user interface" ... how the system communicates information to you while you're riding. We'll be testing out visual, auditory, and tactile methods to see which of them, or combination of them, is able to quickly and easily communicate necessary information without being distracting or cumbersome.
In addition to being able to alert the rider when objects are approaching from the rear, we're also planning for the system to attempt to alert the oncoming driver as well. And there's another feature that we're planning on adding to the system once we get the primary stuff taken care of: a camera to record "evidence" in case of a collision. Coupled with the radar technology, the system will be able to snap some photos just prior to a collision event, that way in the case of a hit-and-run or in the situation of the drivers word against the riders, there's additional evidence to help properly identify the culprit.
I'm very excited about the initial progress made so far and where we're headed. It's been great working with the team at Radicand and I look forward to being able to test our first proof-of-concept on my bicycle very soon!
I spent the next couple of weeks putting together basic product feature requirements and meetings with engineering consultants. I don't have the expertise in radar technology required to make Velalert a reality, so I decided to hire Radicand, a design "collaboratory" and consulting firm, based in Redwood City, CA. They'll help determine the right radar technologies to use to provide the functional requirements and get functional prototypes up and running. We had our first meeting two weeks ago to discuss these functional requirements and some initial trade-off considerations associated with various radar options. We had our second meeting on Tuesday last week, and have settled on two different technologies to use for initial prototyping. We may ultimately build two different products based on how each of them turn out.
Once the ordered parts arrive, Radicand will start assembling the first iteration of the prototypes and I'm hoping to have one ready to strap onto my bike in a week or two! I'll put it through some user testing and we'll use the feedback to improve on the next iteration. One of the important considerations we're exploring in this first iteration (in addition to the radar technology) is the "user interface" ... how the system communicates information to you while you're riding. We'll be testing out visual, auditory, and tactile methods to see which of them, or combination of them, is able to quickly and easily communicate necessary information without being distracting or cumbersome.
In addition to being able to alert the rider when objects are approaching from the rear, we're also planning for the system to attempt to alert the oncoming driver as well. And there's another feature that we're planning on adding to the system once we get the primary stuff taken care of: a camera to record "evidence" in case of a collision. Coupled with the radar technology, the system will be able to snap some photos just prior to a collision event, that way in the case of a hit-and-run or in the situation of the drivers word against the riders, there's additional evidence to help properly identify the culprit.
I'm very excited about the initial progress made so far and where we're headed. It's been great working with the team at Radicand and I look forward to being able to test our first proof-of-concept on my bicycle very soon!
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