Project description
A smart way to reduce accidents between drivers and cyclists
Public transport is not the only alternative to the car and traffic jams. Cycling is now seen as the way ahead for European towns and cities. The bicycle is the most used means of transportation for more than 40 million people in the EU. But they are also the most vulnerable road users since they are relatively unprotected compared to motorists. Keeping cyclists safe is a top priority. In this context, the EU-funded Blinkers project proposes a holistic system incorporating lights and smart sensors to ensure complete visibility and predictability of cyclists. The system increases visibility and predictability when changing directions, as well as predictability when braking, and safety space respected so that drivers do not overtake cyclists. The project will focus on making the Blinkers system compatible with bike sharing systems.
Objective
The usage of the bicycle is increasing worldwide, especially in urban areas. Indeed, the bicycle is already the most used mean of transportation for more than 40 million EU citizens . However, cyclists remain the most vulnerable road users. Statistics clearly show that more than 55% of these accidents occur at crossroads, junctions and roundabouts in urban areas and currently cyclists lack appropriate technical equipment to keep them safe in such common traffic situations.
Blinkers is the first holistic system incorporating lights and smart sensors to ensure complete visibility and predictability of cyclists. Such integration stands out when compared to other safety-related cycling accessories by truly improving visibility and predictability of the cyclist in any situation and from all angles of vision, solving the three cyclists’ fundamental problems in urban environments: 1) Visibility and predictability when changing directions; 2) Predictability when braking; 3) Safety space respected.
To date, we have raised €475K from a crowd-funding campaign and two funding rounds. These funds, together with own funding, allowed us to invest into the development and testing of Blinkers to ensure its robustness and efficiency and move into the commercialisation stage. Within this innovation project we are now aiming at adapting the product to be compatible with bike sharing systems, where it is expected to make a direct contribution to the reduction of fatalities and severity of injuries.
The proposed work in Phase 1 of the SME instrument fits into our overall plan to reach the market by contributing the financial resources needed to plan a fast sound wider deployment of Blinkers and its market uptake.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering sensors smart sensors
- natural sciences physical sciences optics laser physics
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.3.4. - SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Smart, Green And Integrated Transport
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.2.1.1. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies - Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
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H2020-EU.2.3.1. - Mainstreaming SME support, especially through a dedicated instrument
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-SMEInst-2016-2017
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
8037 ZURICH
Switzerland
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.