GameboyRMH
GameboyRMH GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
5/7/09 10:59 a.m.

http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2009-05/05/external-airbag-designed-to-protect-pedestrians.aspx

walterj
walterj Dork
5/7/09 11:11 a.m.

Is this so they can lower the nose and make cars pretty again?

Wouldn't make more sense to make that "predictive" deployment knock them off to the side? Preferrably using a giant foam hand in a "bitchslap" motion.

Strizzo
Strizzo Dork
5/7/09 11:14 a.m.

you kinda have to hand it to them though. there are not many people who, when asked "how do we make this safer?" their answer is add more exploding things

neon4891
neon4891 SuperDork
5/7/09 11:22 a.m.

That must be what the Jag designer was talking about in that one episode of top gear, IIRC from season 1

DrBoost
DrBoost Reader
5/7/09 11:23 a.m.

I think we should line the streets with airbags, on everything from lamposts to trees. Then when there is a fender-bender 6,000 airbags will deploy, enveloping everything within a 2,000 foot distance. Now everyone else who is rubber-necking and talking on the phone is safe as well?

aircooled
aircooled SuperDork
5/7/09 11:26 a.m.

Am I the only person that thinks making it safer to hit pedestrians might be a bad thing!?!!!?

MrJoshua
MrJoshua SuperDork
5/7/09 11:53 a.m.

We could just tie old mattresses to everything like they used to do to trees around here at motocross tracks.

andrave
andrave New Reader
5/7/09 12:48 p.m.

am I the only one who thinks its a little silly to design this into cars?

I'd be far more interested in manufacturers designing a car that can hit a deer at 45 mph and still make it home....

andrave
andrave New Reader
5/7/09 12:49 p.m.

Oh and also, if I hit a deer at 15 mph and my hood crumpled and $2000 worth of airbags deployed, I'd be one pissed motherberkeleyer. I'd probably go out and venegefully shoot it and eat it.

I'd think about doing the same if the accident was the pedestrian's fault.

pigeon
pigeon Reader
5/7/09 1:51 p.m.
aircooled wrote: Am I the only person that thinks making it safer to hit pedestrians might be a bad thing!?!!!?

Same argument that was made with seatbelts and then airbags - people will feel safer so will drive more riskily. The numbers of deaths and injuries continue to go down though.

But yeah, I think it's a stupid idea. Soon we'll be back to the original laws when cars first came into existence, which required a person to walk ahead of the vehicle with a flag or lamp to warn of the approaching car so as not to spook horses.

Hell, rather than make cars safer for pedestrians, make them more dangerous to pedestrians - as if 3000+ pounds of steel, glass and rubber moving fairly quickly isn't dangerous enough! That'll incentivise pedestrians to pay more attention to cars and/or let Darwin thin the heard more effectively. Bring back big, sharp hood ornaments!

mad_machine
mad_machine GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
5/7/09 3:01 p.m.

having been hit twice by cars (once a teen while crossing a street on the green, and once the last year on my bicycle from behind) I think it may be a good idea to have the bumper preload and the hood pop upwards to cushion the blow..

I just hope it is something you can reset yourself with a bit of muscle

andrave
andrave New Reader
5/7/09 4:03 p.m.

like a mousetrap?

Jensenman
Jensenman SuperDork
5/7/09 4:28 p.m.

Here's how to get those pesky pedestrians out of the way for good:

mad_machine
mad_machine GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
5/7/09 6:54 p.m.

mmrrmmmmm soylant green

InigoMontoya
InigoMontoya Reader
5/7/09 11:22 p.m.

http://video.dragoncontv.com/soylent_green.mp4

This is what happens when my sick friends minds, and video cameras intersect....

mad_machine
mad_machine GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
5/8/09 10:24 a.m.

too funny.. that is great!

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