Air Bag Jackets...

[onlyagibson]

A safety advantage or expensive gimmick? Please discuss.

[ed85379]

Seems like the very concept is a bad idea to me.

Think about it, what sets off the airbags? An impact. In a car, there is a tiny amount of time between the impact of the outside of the car until the head hits the dashboard, enough time for the bag to inflate.

What would trigger the airbags in a jacket? An impact. That means you've already impacted the ground, and already had your bones broken before the bags even inflate. The only result is further humiliation for looking like the Michelin Man .

[TVB]

An air-bag-suit is triggered by a line attached to the cycle, inflating as soon as the rider is thrown from it.

[ed85379]

An air-bag-suit is triggered by a line attached to the cycle, inflating as soon as the rider is thrown from it.

And if you forget to detach yourself, or accidentally tug the cord... It just seems ridiculous to me.

[TVB]

I'm not saying it's a perfect system (i.e. it won't help if you don't get separated from the bike), and I'm certainly not about to run out and buy one myself. I'm just explaining how they work and that they can offer some protection.

[Vic]

I thought they are triggered by a string or somesuch gizmo that you have to remember to clip together when you hop on the scooter. What I have pictured in my mind is like the little kill switch on my dad's Bayliner boat that the driver was supposed to clip to their person, if you were thrown from the boat (or if you had a curious daughter that pulled on the thing and disconnected it and then was afraid that she had broken the boat because she didn't know what it is so she put the string in her pocket when you were all covering the boat at the dock after a day on the lake and took it home and your wife found it in the dryer but didn't know what it was so she put it on the shelf in the laundry room and the next time you went out to start your boat it would not start and so you ended up paying a lot of money to have it towed over to the dock and loaded onto your trailer so you could haul it all the way to the dealer in the next county and then paid them big bucks to throughly go over the whole thing until someone noticed that the string was missing and so they ordered another one and when you got the new string trigger thingie and were complaining to your wife about how much money you had paid for that little string and blaming the evil person that had broken into your covered boat at the dock and stolen your kill switch string trigger thing and how it had to have been malicious mischief and your wife saw the string and remembered what was sitting on the shelf in the laundry room so you call your two daughters in and show them the string trigger thing and your younger daughter identifies it immediately and knows what it is how it works and where it goes and how to replace it when it gets pulled off accidentally but your older daughter is standing there with a look of horror on her face because she still thinks she broke daddy's boat so everyone knows who pulled it off and guiltily stuck it in her pocket and that story is trotted out at every family get together for the next 20 years... )

Oh wow, anyway, so back to the jacket trigger, my understanding is that if the string trigger thing is pulled off it would cause the jacket to inflate. Might be a good way to do it, so long as you remember to latch it, and unlatch it. Me? I would end up walking into work during the first week looking like the Michelin Man...

-the older daughter of the family

[jmazza]

I think it's a really interesting idea that has merit but isn't without challenges. Here is an article/review about one such jacket that was posted on WebBikeWorld back in 2004 (which surprised me that it was that long ago). There's absolutely nothing ridiculous in R&D efforts being spent on trying to better protect us in the event of a crash.

Interesting points/questions from the review:

*Yes, figuring out the triggering system can be challenging (where to clip it, how to adjust it, how to remember to unhook it when you dismount).

*This particular jacket uses a changeable compressed carbon dioxide cylinder to inflate the jacket. This means that the airbag can easily be reused.

*How does armor coexist and work with an airbag?

[ranette]

Dainese is putting significant effort and €€€ into the development their D Air system.

"Dainese was appointed the TT’s Official Safety Partner in 2008 and has used the demanding event as a test-bed for the innovative D-Air system. TT racer Guy Martin has been crucial in development work and has collaborated closely with Dainese’s engineers in preparing the D-Air system for eventual commercial availability."

Not that I'm rushing out to buy one, but keep in mind that not too long ago airbags in cars were pretty esoteric. Bottom line is that if Dainese is investing in the technology, people with a good deal more knowledge of the industry than most of us have feel that it is viable both technologically and commercially.

[ERik3tb]

I've read about it and seen several videos of the airbag jackets in question. I think it would be a good idea, with armor, when riding at speed but I don't like the idea of it being reusable.

the idea of reusing an airbag after it has slid down pavement bothers me.

[onlyagibson]

I do know that in most models the line that attaches to your bike has to have at least 50 lbs of pressure to trigger the airbag. So if you stand up when you get off the bike it will not trigger, but when you are thrown from the bike it will. That keeps you from going into work looking like the Michelin Man

[jasondavis48108]

There was a guy near where I live on I-94 crashed at over 80mph and had one of these jackets and a full face. He was thrown more than 100ft from his bike and walked away from the acident. Not that you can judge a product by one situation but this certanly speaks highly of the jackets protective ability. I myself wouldn't use one cause I know I'd trip it regularly by forgetting to detach it from the scooter when I got off

[nateandcourt]

I think they are awesome.

edit:

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/14328936/detail.html

"Joseph McPhatter, of Randallstown, was injured in a crash on Interstate 83 after being cut off by another motorist in September. According to police, McPhatter was ejected 100 feet, hitting the ground at an impact rate of 140 mph.

Police said that McPhatter might have been severely injured had it not been for the Impact Jacket he was wearing -- a jacket that inflates like an air bag when a motorcyclist is in an wreck.

McPhatter suffered from sore ribs and knees and a few other minor injuries, but it could have been much worse, officials said."



<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/FcTv6N5ppEU&hl ... ram><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/FcTv6N5ppEU&hl ... fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

<object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GZpGCntUzaE&hl ... ram><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GZpGCntUzaE&hl ... fs=1&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>

[jmazza]

the idea of reusing an airbag after it has slid down pavement bothers me.

Well no gear should be used again after its safety has been compromised by a slide. That article was pretty old and it sounded as if there was a chance of accidental inflation of the airbag so reusability would be a good idea there!

[Quo Vadimus]

A big question I'd have is if they inflate fast enough and if the cord is short enough to protect you if you hit the car that pulls in front of you, rather than flying over it and hitting the ground?

Still, this thread has me thinking that I might consider it if the price were right...

[BuddyLicious]

I would assume there probably isnt any where near enough real life accidents to research of riders who crashed wearing these air jackets.So then how to decide on the effectiviness of the jacket? Only way I know is by having reputable and trusted companies,institutions etc doing the exhaustive testing,just like on helmets,boots etc.Question is,is that information out there?

[Scootagangsta]

reviving an old thread... has technology improved in the past two years? does anyone on the boards have experience with these? I am pondering the vest from http://www.armoredairjackets.com/

[siobhan]

There's a bunch of threads on advrider about airbag jackets. You may want to search over there. I remember reading a bunch of good things about the Hit jackets.

Haha, just checked the website and the guy's on my bike. Maybe I should get one because that bike makes me do stupid things.

[Syd]

Haha, just checked the website and the guy's on my bike.

Maybe you should call the cops!