Visibility

 A cyclist's visibility is a significant factor in crashes with motor vehicles. Being bright - day and night- increases the chances of bypassing motorists being able to see you. Although how would a cyclists know exactly how visible their fluorescent apparel and illuminating contraptions are? The apparent visibility to the driver may very well be different to the cyclists, due to weather conditions and varying light available. 

My device measures the visibility of a cyclists absorbing photons as an indication of of weather and light conditions. In measuring the photons and the relative light being emitted from the device, the device will project a symbol indicating the apparent visibility, where the user would then manually increase/decrease the light being emitted. 

As for the direction of the device, I initially began with handles (first soft model) that could be attatched on to the end of the handlebar, however there proved to be some troubles in the way in which the cyclists would interact with the handles i.e. possibility of blocking light sources with hands. I've decided to consider the entire handlebar (second soft model) as a whole, allowing me more room to implement the idea. The main light will be emitted from the centre of the handle bar and secondary lights, from the two handles.  

As there are many users for the bicycle, I'm beginning to explore how the handles (length, height, angle) will differ for each user. In the earlier stages of my refinement, I've looked at the ways that the handlebar can be stored (third image - storage position), and I decided that the rotation of the handles that were used for storage can also be used for cyclists who cycle with different angled handles. The rotation and folding of the components are a bit of a trouble spot, because I have to make sure they can rotate without any interference and at the same time, have a harmonious form, no matter which way of rotation. 

--

Cynthia Tang