“Back in my day, we shattered our pelvises on the linoleum. And that’s how we liked it!”
French company Helite has been making personal airbags for a while. But most of those have been targeted at hobbyists; bikers, horse riders, small aircraft pilots ant the like. But Hip’Air is the first targeted at the elderly; specifically, aiming at the hips.
Older people are at greater risk of falling (and not being able to get back up), in addition to having bones that are more brittle. So as odd as the Hip’Air might seem, it could be a life saver, since broken bones become more dangerous as you age.
The Hip’Air is a roughly 2 pound belt that contains airbags that deploy on both the right and left hip. It detects and deploys within 280 milliseconds, which is about 120 milliseconds less than the average fall takes. It does so using gyroscopes and accelerometers. Its battery can also last for about 15 days, and will let you know when its charge is depleted via na LED and sound.
The one downside is that it will run you about $790, plus $50 per gas canister replacement. Hip’Air’s European launch is in March this year, while the U.S. will have to wait until September.
Source: Engadget
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