IIT Roorkee Develops Inflatable Helmets To Reduce Motorcycle Accidents

<p>27 per cent of <strong>road deaths in India</strong> are among users of motorized two-wheeler. Penalties and fines are imposed on drivers and passengers of two-wheeler if they fail to comply with the requisite standards. Not wearing safety gear including helmets, overloading the vehicle with more than two travelers result in tragic accidents.</p> <p>In India, majority of the population use scooters and motor bikes as a mode of transport for their daily chores. Travelling long distances with a helmet is a difficult task for many, so much so that they are ready to risk their well being. A team of innovative students from <strong>IIT, Roorkee</strong>, <strong>Sarang Nagwanshi</strong>, <strong>Mohit Siddha</strong> and <strong>Rajvardhan Singh</strong>, in final year of <strong>Mechanical Engineering</strong> have developed <strong>'inflated helmets'</strong> that weigh like cushions.</p> <p>"We got the idea of inflatable helmet while we were working on inflatable space antenna at <strong>ISRO </strong>during our internship. As this helmet is being developed for the first time in India we got very limited help from any external source and our learning curve was very steep. The results obtained are very encouraging and we are working towards converting this idea into a reality," said Sarang Nagwanshi, one of the three inventors.</p> <p>The Unique Selling Point of this type of helmets is that since they are filled with air they <strong>can be folded into a small bag</strong> which can be easily carried as opposed to the usual heavy, solid helmets that tire the driver of the two-wheeler. They also do not provide sufficient protection against skull fractures and internal brain bleeding.</p>