Many people want to do their bit to help save the planet,
or to simply get fit, by riding a bike instead of using their vehicle. However, traveling on the road when the sun goes down can be off-putting for fear of not being seen by motorists. The Firefly light has been designed to address this concern by making them more visible. It uses a passive Infrared sensor to detect traffic approaching from behind the rider and projects light from flashing LEDs onto the back of the rider with varying intensity depending on the proximity of the traffic. The Firefly light is another shortlisted design submission in our ongoing series of the Australian Design Awards – James Dyson Award 2010.
The device’s protruding arm allows the light to illuminate the entire back of the rider at any angle, while a set of LEDs also illuminates the ground directly beneath the rider, giving traffic a greater sense of exactly where the rider is. Completely illuminating the whole back of the rider, regardless of riding position, exploits the vast space for increased visibility, says its designer, James Morton, from the University of New South Wales.
“This makes it the only bicycle light that gives the rider human characteristics so they aren’t treated as just another cyclist. As well as this unique back light, the Firefly also incorporates ground illumination to provide a perception of depth for approaching traffic, as well as a tail light feature, all in the one unit.”
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