and soon after an inflation time of less than .05 seconds

Alpinestars has quietly been testing a motorcycle airbag program as early as 2003, using then-GP racer John Hopkins for information logging. Casey Stoner picked up guinea pig duties in 2007, assisting glean added information acquisition and crash dynamics information and facts. The details of the process were lately outlined to the media at Alpinestars's Torrance, California headquarters.

The Alpinestars Tech Air system employs a modular arrangement featuring a central processor unit that fits in to the rear hump of racing leathers, and two airbags that rest on the rider's shoulders. Intended to safeguard the shoulder and clavicle regions, the airbags are triggered when the battery-pack powered CPU has gleaned accelerometer and entire body position facts suggesting a crash is taking place. A nitrogen-based gas mixture gets detonated, and soon after an inflation time of less than .05 seconds, 5 seconds of protection can be found in the charge prior to the airbags get rid of stress, which will take an elapsed time of 25 seconds. The system can give 1 much more airbag detonation approximately a minute following the primary detonation.

Though Tech Air is presently limited for track use (as is Dainese's ), it ought to only be a matter of time prior to the technologies trickles down into a street application. Alpinestars expects their Tech Air system to turn out to be out there to buyers in Summer time of 2011 at a value of about $2,500-- a modest cost to pay for that opportunity to reduce or steer clear of one particular on the most common injuries suffered by motorcyclists.

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Photo 2007 zx6r fairings? Alpinestars; click to enlarge