Going on a ride on a bike can be an exhilarating feeling. Some people would want to combine that with music listening while they go out biking. But with wearing helmets, this limits how they can enjoy while using earphones. Helmets can also be limiting in the sense that people may not be able to take a phone call without having to stop biking for a moment, find a safe area and then take off their helmets to take the call. For some people this can be quite inconvenient. A device called Ahead may help address these issues with helmets.
Ahead is a unique device that can be attached to any type of helmet. Once attached, it can transform the headgear into a wearable speaker. It makes use of an oscillator that transform audio signals into vibrations that it transmits to any solid object. In the case of Ahead, the vibrations is transmitted into the helmet, allowing the wearers to hear the sound from the entire area of the helmet. This also allows helmet wearers to keep their ears open and still be aware of their environment in order to be safer.
The Ahead device also connects to your smartphone or other portable smart gadgets via Bluetooth. People can then use it not only for listening to music but also for hands free calling. For calls, the device makes use of two narrow-angle mics to capture the sound from your mouth. The audio is then made to run through an algorithm to eliminate background and ambient noise for clearer phone calls from both sides. The Ahead can also allow users to get GPS turn-by-turn notifications coming from the smartphone while traveling. The Ahead device for helmets is undergoing some crowd funding campaign at Kickstarter. An $89 early pledge will get you to be a part of the supporters who will be getting the 1st production batch of the said device, which is expected to be out in October of this year.
Image Source: Kickstarter
