I mentioned a few times in a couple of different blogs why I'm steering clear of using sound for the blind spot notification, but I thought it best to give it a blog of its own.
For the biker to be aware that they are sitting in a cars blind spot for a length of time, they'll need to be notified. After speaking to several bikers, the idea of hosting the notification in the helmet was the most popular (rather than having it on the bike), so since then, I've been trying to figure out a way to make that possible.
Why The Helmet?
There are a few reasons for hosting this 'notification' in the helmet rather than on the bike:
1. Bikers* like the idea of their bike remaining 'naked' and without technology. Despite the sensors of the kit being fitted to the bike, if the feedback were in the helmet, it would feel more like a helmet accessory than a bike accessory.
2. Bikers* can already spend hundreds of pounds on their helmet, so by adding this kit to the helmet rather than the bike it would feel like they're taking it to the next level. This way of thinking proved popular when floated with different bikers within the community.
3. There are already a lot of kits designed to fit to a motorbike helmet (such as rider to rider intercoms), so I know that it's a popular answer for similar sorts of kit.
Why Visuals?
There are a few good reasons on why I've trying to prioritise visuals over sound for this project:
1. Visuals play a big part in riding a motorbike. Bike riders already lookout for car indicators, brake lights, road signs, dash lights etc. so they are instinctively less distracted and more aware of visual cues. My hope is, by only adding one or two more indication lights/symbols, that a rider wouldn't find it distracting and instead be able to react well to the visual notification as its already so well ingrained in a bike riders nature to do so.
2. It's harder to miss visuals. Like my last point, bikers are so used to looking out for visual cues that they'll be more aware of any visual notification, which sound might blend into the background or engine noise of the bike.
3. Visuals tend to be softer than sound. Even though in the past, I have referred to the kit as a blind spot detection 'warning', the helmet notification will be more of a heads-up than a warning. If both sound and visuals were too harsh and abrupt, they stand a chance of startling the rider, causing them to lose concentration and increase the likelihood of them being in a crash. It's easier to ease in visuals, such as a soft glowing light or a fade of colours to warn of time spent in a blind spot than it is to introduce sound without scaring someone.
4. Easier to understand. It's far easier to determine what different visuals mean than what different sounds mean. Different sounds, if not heard regularly enough, might stand the chance of sounding too similar to other sound-defined features. By having clear, defined symbols for each element, the rider will be less likely to get confused while using the kit.
Why Not Sound?
1. Bikes are LOUD. Motorbikes, even with stock exhaust pipes, are usually pretty loud. When fitted with custom pipes (which is a pretty popular swap to make on a bike), they can become even louder and therefore difficult to hear anything over them. Just a few years ago my Dad, his friend and I went on a month-long tour of Europe and his friend's bike was so loud we all ended up having to buy earplugs for it, despite being ahead on a different bike. It would be a struggle to listen out for and hear sound notifications especially when bikes
2. Zoning out Noise. Similarly to my first point, quite often bikers zone out noise (or all noise blends into one). Unlike being surrounded by a big metal cage, helmets provide very little noise dampening. This means there's a lot of road noise, engine noise from your bike, engine noise from cars, buses etc. so unless the sound is as loud, sudden and startling like a car horn bikers tend to zone them out since I'm not looking to scare bikers while, they're out on the bike I'd need to use a softer sound, which runs this risk of blending into the background and being ignored like all the other sounds on the road.
3. Harder to Communicate. It's far harder to differentiate sound that it is imagery or text. Imagery can have a clear underlying theme (e.g. red for danger, green for safe/go) while sound, unless startling and dramatic, is far harder to use as a useful communication tool.
So there we are, there are some of the reasons why I believe visual & sight-based notifications will be more effective than sound-based. Despite this, it doesn't mean I'm entirely ruling out sound. If visuals within the helmet are too challenging to execute, then I will have to move to sound-based notifications, or if that doesn't work a bike based method instead.
That's all for today's blog.
Thanks!
Cover Photo Image: Johnston, K. (2017) Round Grey Speaker. Available at: https://unsplash.com/photos/NaG0G9Wi7nI (Accessed: 09/03/2020).
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