Motorcyclists could someday benefit from vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) research presently underway by Honda.
The company has developed new ways to give clear and timely information to the rider about road conditions and events once they have been detected by infrastructure or by other vehicles in the vicinity.
A visual human-machine interface (HMI) is located on the upper edge of the motorcycle’s instrument panel, as close as possible to the normal line of vision, allowing the rider to spot the information and warnings without having to shift focus away from the road.
The HMI lights up in a soft blue glow to indicate it is connected to the communication network. When there is a potentially dangerous situation ahead, it generates a warning. A cluster of white LEDs illuminates within the HMI to alert the rider to the hazard ahead, and their position to the left, centre, or right indicates the direction of the danger.
In addition to the visual warning, the system generates an audible warning in the rider’s helmet using a Bluetooth connection. The alerting sound is followed by spoken advice, advising the direction and distance to the danger.