We’re all used to airbags in cars…they’re big pillows that puff out to cushion the blow of impact when you get into a crash.  Well, that’s all fine and dandy for a car, but it’s hardly practical for motorcycles, seeing as if you crash on a motorcycle, you will likely be tossed off your bike and onto the road.

Well it seems the airbag concept can now be applied to motorcycles using a different approach.  Motoair has developed an airbag jacket for motorcyclists designed to help improve safety out on the roads.

The concept is pretty simple, and can be easily compared to an inflatable dinghy.  A ripcord triggers the inflation of the jacket, designed to puff out to cushion the rider’s fall before they hit the ground.  The specialized jacket attaches to the bike itself, and is designed to pull and detach from the motorcycle when the rider suddenly comes off the bike.  This supposedly means the rider won’t end up attached to the flailing bike as it spins out of control, and allows the rider to fall as they would naturally, but inflate to protect vital parts of the body an average 0.2 – 0.5 seconds before they hit the ground.

The jacket is said to, when inflated, provide an armour of extra protection to vulnerable parts of the rider’s body like the spine area, chest, back, neck, and also add extra protection to the major organs of the upper body.

It seems the jacket can also be used for other activities like horseback riding or water sports – activities that risk high-impact injuries.

And the designs of the jackets themselves actually do’t look too bad – they don’t look too bulky when they aren’t inflated and in my humble opinion, look pretty good.  The airbag jacket can be used repeatedly, but you would have to replace and reinstall the inflation mechanism after it is inflated.  I can just imagine first-time riders forgetting about the ripcord and just hopping off their bike, when suddenly their jacket blows up like a balloon…

Here’s a quick video to give you a look at how the concept of the airbag jacket works: