Will Anyone Care If BMW Makes Motorcycles Safer? They Should

Is it possible to make a safer motorcycle, and more importantly, would anyone buy one if it were made?

The designers and engineers at BMW are at the cutting edge of new motorcycle technology, and their new models are packed with high-tech features. The Advanced Safety Concept (ASC) motorcycle is their attempt to re-think the bike.

BMW led the way in the use of ABS (Anti-Lock Brakes), and the ASC motorcycle is meant to transform the way we ride a motorcycle. Based on the K 1600 GT, the ASC project isn’t meant to change motorcycling into something more akin to driving a car, but to make riding as we know it today safer.

New innovative technologies like an ABS-integrated Automatic Stability Control and advanced Electronic Suspension Adjustment  are aimed at giving the rider more accurate control.

Advanced daytime lighting which car companies like Audi use on their headlights has been incorporated into the concept, and anything which makes a motorcycle more conspicuous to other drivers is a step in the right direction.
An automatic collision notification system integrated into the bike will contact a BMW call center should the motorcycle be involved in a crash or when the rider manually triggers the feature. The collision notification can provide details from the bike like current time data and GPS coordinates to provide the exact location of the machine and rider.

Not enough for you more geeky among us? Then how about an integrated digital camera which scans the road ahead of the bike and displays that information for the rider. The system can pick out a speed limit sign, recognize it, display it on the dashboard and then let you know if you’re trashing the legal limit.

The BMW ConnectedRide with Intelligent Assistance Systems is designed to communicate with a network of connected vehicles and devices like signs, other vehicles, and fire stations to inform the rider of current traffic conditions and possible road hazards. Powered by an external system of networked ‘nodes,’ the other vehicles in the system can communicate with one another in an attempt to eliminate crashes altogether by providing necessary hazard information.

The elements of BMW ConnectedRide:

• Cross Traffic Assistant follows any networked vehicles approaching from the sides, and it if appears an impact is imminent,it sends a message to the oncoming vehicle and then flashes LED lighting strips on the bike to alert oncoming traffic.
• Traffic Light Phase Assistant takes the status of traffic lights and alerts the rider of upcoming red lights.
•  Emergency Vehicle Warning System connects the bike to emergency vehicles in the area as a warning to the rider when they are approaching a nearby section of road.
• Electronic Brake Light technology connects the bike to other vehicles and informs surrounding vehicles of heavy braking patterns nearby.
• Left Turn Assistant may well be the most useful part of the system. It warns both drivers and riders if a connected vehicle is preparing to make a left turn across traffic and flashes the bike’s lights for added visibility.