When you’re out on two wheels, the last thing you need is distraction. Your bike is smaller and harder to see than a car and you’re not surrounded by a steel cage. You put yourself at risk everytime you take your eyes off the rode, whether you’re looking down to check your speed or checking over your shoulder. Smart helmets with integrated rear-view cameras and head-up displays aim to mitigate this, but what if you are attached to your current headgear? The Hudway Sight attaches to any helmet and uses a head-up display to augment your ride with a variety of aids and conveniences.
The Hudway Sight comes in two parts: A lens you mount to your helmet in front of your eyes and a “brain” that mounts to the back of your helmet that transmits information to the lens.
A tiny projector — part of the lens assembly — takes the information it receives and projects it onto the lens. The brightness automatically adjusts to environmental conditions thanks to an ambient light sensor.
The brain has a transmitter that receives information wirelessly from your smartphone and relays it to the lens, which uses waveguide optics to allow for augmented reality integration and brighter, clearer graphics. The attached battery gives the kit up to eight hours of operation.
Your phone is the real brains behind everything, serving as the control panel for navigation apps, traffic alerts, and vehicle data including speed and distance. You can also listen to your tunes and send and receive messages and calls — the device works with Bluetooth headsets — but this itself could prove a distraction, so you have to exercise caution. Virtually any app can be projected onto the Hudway Sight’s lens.
“We believe that waveguide technology has a brilliant future and, when truly adapted to mass market, will create a revolution in things and how we interact with them,” Hudway co-founder Ivan Klabukov said in a statement. “Our device is low-cost and its ease of use allows two-wheel drivers to experience the kind of augmented reality they see in sci-fi movies.”
Hudway teamed up with DigiLens, the Silicon Valley, California-based company revolutionizing AR displays through waveguide optics, and display manufacturer Young Optics.
“After very significant R&D efforts, we’ve created a waveguide display technology that is truly unrivaled with the ability to sharply see the digital information even on the brightest sunny day,” DigiLens CEO Chris Pickett said. “In the near future, we believe that all major helmet makers will integrate AR waveguide displays to make the riding experience better and safer.”
