New Technology helps drivers avoid cyclists by using audio alert

Cycle Eye, which is being developed from Bristol University’s innovation centre, is new and innovative technology that alerts drivers that cyclists are close by.

The unique creation features a device that is fitted to the outer left side of large vehicles, using radar and camera sensors to identify when cyclists are close. The unit will then alert the driver when a cyclist enters a two-meter proximity around the vehicle by sounding an alarm.

Because the detection algorithm allows the device to differentiate between a cyclist and other objects on the side of the road such as lampposts and other vehicles, the product is unique in comparison to others available on the market.

The device was trialed by Transport for London, and over 3 days of testing had a 98.5% success rate at identifying cyclists. After more intensive trialing, it is hoped Cycle Eye will go into production next year.

“We've developed a very intelligent system using radar and image processing. We can tell what objects are and the system can still identify cyclists in poor visibility and bad conditions," says Mr Hutchinson, chief executive of Fusion Processing, the company that created Cycle Eye.

Kevin Clinton, head of road safety at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), said: "With technologies of this type, the key thing is to trial them to make sure they work reliably. It's also important to make sure that they do not overload the driver with too many things to check and too many alerts to interpret."

With the number of road cycle accidents seeing a significant increase in the last year, the technology comes as a much-needed solution to effectively protecting cyclists against dangers on the road.

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