Nearly 50 per cent of cyclist fatalities in traffic accidents are due to collisions with cars, but Volvo, Ericsson and sport gear manufacturer POC are aiming to reduce that figure with a connected car and helmet prototype.

The concept solution will establish 2-way communication between cyclists and cars, offering proximity warnings to both motorists and cyclists and thereby helping to avoid accidents.

Cycling has seen continued global growth as commuters increasingly elect to take to their bikes. This has results in an increase in serious cycling accidents, which Volvo Cars and POC hope to combat with an innovative and concerted effort.

The helmet solution, which will be unveiled at CES 2015, will use an existing smartphone app and Volvos cloud platform to pinpoint both cyclists and cars with GPS. If an imminent collision is predicted, both parties are warned through a heads-up display alert (for drivers) and helmet-mounted light alert (for cyclists), enabling them to take action.

“The partnership between Volvo, POC and Ericsson is an important milestone in delivering against our future vision in which cars will not crash,” said Klas Bendrik, group chief information officer at Volvo Cars. “By exploring cloud-based safety systems, we are getting closer to eliminating the blind spot between cars and cyclist forever, thereby avoiding collisions.”

“Our mission is to help save lives by reducing the consequences of accidents suffered by gravity sports athletes and cyclists,” said Stefan Ytterborn, CEO and founder of POC. “The partnership with Volvo Cars aligns perfectly with our mission and we are excited to contribute towards making the interaction between cars and bikes as safe as possible.”