We spend a lot of time talking about entertainment and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) for cars, but we have not focused that much on motorcycles or electric bikes even though they are potentially more dangerous to drive. Qualcomm is changing that as it approaches the market for two and three wheeled vehicles to address their severe safety issues in a move to make all vehicles safer.
And given it is often our youth that drive these two wheeled vehicles, this effort helps protect our kids, so it’s as important as our efforts to improve safety in cars and trucks.
Let’s talk about how Qualcomm’s technologies will make motorcycles, bicycles and three wheeled vehicles safer.
Motorcycles, Bicycles and Tricycles
Unlike automobiles and trucks, those riding motorcycles, bicycles and tricycles do not have the luxury of the protections afforded to modern 4+ wheeled vehicles. The primary protective gear consists of leather clothing and a certified helmet (required in most places by law to keep medical costs down). There have been efforts to apply airbags to this class of vehicle, and there are products in market that afford better protection, but these are more the exception than the rule. In any collision between one of these smaller vehicles and a car or especially a truck, the lighter vehicle driver is likely to be at a massive disadvantage.
The smaller vehicles can hide in larger vehicles’ blind spots, tend to do things drivers of larger vehicles are not prepared for (like lane splitting), and, as with other types of vehicles, the drivers do not always adhere to speed limits and like to show off with potentially deadly consequences.
These smaller vehicles are limited in size and carrying capacity meaning that any automated solution needs to be tiny and lightweight. Otherwise, it will not be viable.
Qualcomm’s Solution
Qualcomm is adapting its automotive class of entertainment and ADAS solutions to these smaller vehicles. It has an advantage given it started with smartphones and was forced by that market to lead on weight, wireless connectivity and adequate performance. As a result, Qualcomm has a comprehensive solution that begins with basic entertainment and communications and advances to full ADAS support. Granted, the larger the vehicle the more comprehensive the solution, which means that capabilities should scale up as you move from bicycles and motorcycles to three wheeled vehicles that are typically more carlike.
The coming benefits include better communications and shared entertainment between those riding on the same bike and in groups, the ability to better identify threats like gravel and black ice and both alert the driver and change the vehicle’s driving behavior to help avoid an accident. AI-driven capabilities can locate fuel and charging locations close to the rider and advise that the rider is approaching a dangerous area while automatically reconfiguring the vehicle to better survive it.
It can alert the vehicle’s owner to an attempted theft and disable the vehicle so that the thief cannot ride off with it or use it once stolen. Collision alerts notify the rider they are in a blind spot and might get hit or alert the driver of the larger vehicle to watch out for the smaller vehicle they may not be aware is close to them. AR solutions are built into glasses and helmets to better navigate the world and to provide additional instrumentation to improve the driver’s on-street performance and avoid accidents. They can provide geo fencing for parents and rental companies to make sure these vehicles do not go places that are not approved or notify parents that a child is sneaking out with the vehicle at night. Automatic purchase capabilities tie back to the various mobile wallets so the rider can more easily pay for tolls and food on the road.
This collection of features should allow these smaller vehicles to better approach the safety of cars and trucks and avoid most of the accidents that take our riders today.
Wrapping Up:
Two and three wheeled vehicles are far less safe than cars, but the same ADAS technology that is being applied to cars and trucks can be applied to these smaller vehicles by reducing theft and making them far safer to ride. I had to stop riding motorcycles because it simply had become too unsafe, and I don’t heal the way I once did. This Qualcomm effort, if successful (and it likely will be), should go a long way to providing a path back to riding motorcycles for me. That alone makes me excited.
