The secret to keeping something safe is to secure it with a device that looks as inconspicuous as possible, and in the case of bikes that could be something like the FAST smart taillight.
The FAST smart taillight was actually designed with two purposes in mind, and keeping your bike safe through motion tracking is in fact its secondary goal. More importantly, FAST is able to assist bike riders involved in accidents by making sure that help is on the way. Bike helmets and joint protection accessories are getting better and better, but we’re still very vulnerable when riding a bike, especially if the rest of the population is not accustomed with bike lanes and all that. In this context, it’s imperative to make sure that bike riders who end up in an accident are helped right away.
To achieve this, FASTeam, the developers of this connected taillight, equipped this bike accessory with GPS and motion tracking sensors, as well as data connectivity. When the bike is involved in a crash, the coordinates are saved and sent to an emergency contact whose number is stored in the companion app. Seeing as this is a connected device, and hence an Internet-of-Things device, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it comes with an app.
The taillight also includes a photosensitive sensor that detects the environment’s light intensity and adjust FAST’s LEDs accordingly.
The motion tracking sensors can also tell when the bike is messed around with, and can alert the owner via the app. Considering how often bikes are stolen in some parts of the world, an inconspicuous antitheft device such as this smart taillight could give bike owners a lot of peace of mind.
FAST is currently the subject of a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter, where its developers hope to raise $20,000 in the following 31 days. It’s hard to believe that the project won’t meet its goal, given that in less than a week backers have pledged more than $12K, or 60% of the funding goal. The secret behind this major success is the low price of the device. More precisely, early birds can secure a FAST taillight, a light mount and the companion app by pledging $19, while regular backers will have to offer $29 for the same package. Shipping will begin in November 2015, and I assume that Europeans won’t mind that, since a bunch of them are also biking in the harshest weather conditions.
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