A couple of months ago I read an article from an Amsterdam newspaper about the Dutch Cycling Federation conducting a study showing that 60 lives could be saved a year if air bags were installed on the hoods of cars, where cyclists are typically hit in accidents. Then a few days ago, I ran across an article indicating that a research team drawn from Hiroshima University and a municipal technical high school are mounting airbags on the exterior body panels of automobiles.
The panels, called “iSave” (really) are going to be installed on 50 to 100 cars and tested in real-world driving situations later this year. The iSave panels are integrated with interior airbags so that once an exterior bag registers an impact, the air inside it is transferred to a corresponding interior airbag to protect drivers and passengers inside the vehicle.
I can’t say this is necessarily a bad idea, but I can see a lot issues before or if it becomes practical. The scary thing is that some congressman (one that can read) will pick up on this and pass a law requiring all cars to have external air bags by a certain date — like the price of cars isn’t high enough already. I guess the idea is to make being hit by a car feel like being hit in a pillow fight, but somehow I think the car is always going to win. Maybe we’re going about this the wrong way — why not just require clothing manufacturers to make clothes with airbags in their pants and shirts….
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