This New Smart Gadget For Your Bike Helmet Wants To Make Trail Rides Safer

The world around us can be pretty dangerous at times, which is why having emergency contact information handy is always a good idea. A new smart gadget, that you can use with any bicycle helmet, aims to make accessing this information easier while biking. If you're riding alone — whether on the trail or on the road — and have an accident, this clever bike helmet fastener from FIDLOCK and Twiceme Technology makes contacting your emergency contacts simple and quick for first responders. 

It's essentially a high-tech chin strap buckle with NFC, Near Field Communication. NFC is what allows you to tap your phone to send or receive data, like making contactless payments at the register. The NFC reader on your smartphone isn't just for tap-to-pay, though. It can also be used to share information, like with the FIDLOCK SNAP helmet buckle. The small device is looped into the chin straps of a helmet and uses a magnet-mechanical fastening system to secure the helmet. 

With the integrated Twiceme tech, first responders can tap a smartphone to the buckle and receive critical information, like medical details, emergency contacts, and personal info. The buckle requires no batteries, charging, or connectivity. At the moment, this bike helmet smart gadget is available to "equipment partners", presumably for integration with helmets at the factory. 

While the FIDLOCK SNAP buckle isn't currently a direct-to-consumer gadget, it's overall design appears to be highly efficient and versatile. This should make it an enticing option for helmet manufacturers to include on new products. According to FIDLOCK, the new safety fastener won't require gear makers to change anything about their designs or manufacturing processes. It simply replaces the existing chin buckle on most bike helmets and requires no additional components. 

The lack of needing to be charged and claimed one-handed operation should make it appealing to cyclists, including those who prefer trail riding. The same goes for e-bike riders, as states like California crack down on the growing problem of e-bike accidents. In the event of an accident, the rider's contact information is readily available to anyone who can help. The front of the FIDLOCK buckle has "Tap phone for Med. ID" printed on it, to inform those responding what it does. For more on how this technology can help, check out these 10 handy uses for NFC tags around the house.