Concept design for a folding bicycle helmet
"""A Bicycle Helmet for Commuters"" chronicles the designer’s industrial design research and concept development effort for fulfilling some requirements of Master Degree of Fine Arts (MFA) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. A research and design development effort has created a new concept design that provides commuters with a safe, portable, attractive, and easy-to-use bike helmet. The target user group is people aged 16-24 who cycle to work or school. The goal is to stimulate new market demand for a properly fitted helmet to make cycling safer and reduce head trauma injuries in accidents. The new design can be folded up to 50% volume of the existing bicycle helmet and can be carried in a backpack or by other means. The helmet is lined with a wave cushioning material and is combined with Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) foam. Preliminary studies by the manufacturer indicate that this new material uses EPS foam pads in designs that provide better protection from traumatic brain injury. This new material is approximately half the weight of EPS foam, thus making the helmet lighter. The innovative concept design offers bicycle commuters a safer, attractive, and affordable portable design. If it is used and fitted properly, it can prevent and/or reduce severe traumatic brain injury in accidents. Additional design development, prototyping, and user testing are required to demonstrate the feasibility of the concept."
Portable Bicycle Helmet, Bike Helmet Design, Collapsible Bike Helmet, Bicycle Commuter Safety, Traumatic Brain Injury
University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign