Safety

Although automobiles have countless safety devices and technologies, there are relatively few for bicycles by comparison. And that makes little sense when you look at the global trends, which will only increase in coming years with the growth of green initiatives.

That shortcoming inspired London design student Michael Chen to come up with a concept for a jacket he calls the "Reactiv" (that's right, there's no "e" at the end--it's not at typo or some weird British spelling). Using an accelerometer to track movement, the high-tech garment has LEDs on the sleeves that … Read more

An article on News.com reports that the U.K. military is running a test program to monitor driving habits. The test program uses a box from GreenRoad Technologies which records 120 different driving maneuvers and can alert the driver if they are driving poorly. The device uses a row of LED lights that show green for a good driving maneuver, and red for poor. Click here for the full article.

Skyhook Wireless' geopositioning can be useful, but rarely does it save you from a $400 speeding ticket. A start-up named Trapster is trying to change that.

The company has taken a creative spin on using geopositioning to help lead-footed drivers avoid known and newly discovered speed traps and other police dragnets. By installing the application on your mobile phone you'll get heads up on speed cameras, red-light cameras, hiding places, and live police while out and about. The application uses Skyhook Wireless' Wi-Fi and cell tower location positioning system to keep tabs on where you are while you're … Read more

Drivers may watch TV, browse the Web, or even make a sandwich while behind the wheel, but mobile phones have firmly retained their status as king of the road where distractions are concerned. Acknowledging that reality, the wireless "Bluetouch" system at least tries to lessen the dangers of dialing behind the wheel with a large touch screen that seems much easier (and therefore safer) to use than a handset keypad that requires you to avert your eyes.

And if the touch screen is still too difficult, according to Chip Chick, there's also a voice-recognition feature that controls … Read more

Forget old car alarms with their annoying "whoop whoop whoop" sounds, GPS Snitch uses GPS, cellular technology, and the Web to help you locate your car. Unlike with traditional car alarm systems, installation merely requires that you put the GPS Snitch somewhere in the car and attach it to a 12 volt power point. With its motion detector and cell connection, it can send you a text message when it feels your car being moved. Whenever you want to find your car, you can either go online to see where it is on a map, or send a … Read more

Of all the odd combo devices on the road today, this one actually seems to make some sense. Portugal-based NDrive has developed what it calls "the world's first GPS navigation system with a breathalyzer," according to NaviGadget.

There are other car breathalyzers that have been developed, of course, including some that prevent the engine from starting if the driver is past the legal limit. But the built-in GPS system might provide additional incentive for motorists to buy one of these portable devices, which appear to be destined for the European market for 200 euros, or about $297. … Read more

A BBC reporter gets a chance to test the collision avoidance and mitigation systems on a couple of cars in this video. We enjoyed the chance to see what would happen if you really put them to the test, something we are loathe to do with the review cars we get in at CNET Car Tech. Of course, in the BBC video they use a full-size car-shaped inflatable in lieu of an actual car, preventing any personal or property damage. The video shows how a Volvo can come to a complete stop before hitting an object without any driver intervention. … Read more

Forget those all-in-one car media systems. The automotive convergence device of the future may be the rear-view mirror.

We've already seen versions equipped with built-in Webcams, back-up cameras, GPS tracking, and even heart monitors. And now there's one that comes with a DVR.

The "Camera Recorder Pro" isn't made for drivers who want to catch up on previous episodes of Lost while behind the wheel (we hope). Quite the contrary, it's meant as a safety device to document events at the scene of a fender-bender, according to Gizmodo.

There are plenty of other technologies … Read more

Some people will do just about anything to get their bikes noticed. But if you're one of those boring cyclists who just want lights for safety--as opposed to a statement--then Puma's latest model may be worth consideration.

The reason: It glows in the dark. We're not talking about some randomly placed stickers or reflectors here, but the whole frame. It's finished in luminescent paint that absorbs sunlight during the day, according to ProductDose, so it's not as if you'd be riding around in Day-Glo colors 24/7.

And lest you think this … Read more