BMW Developing Jackets With Alpinestars Tech-Air Airbag Technology

Dennis Chung
by Dennis Chung

BMW is working with Alpinestars to develop a new airbag-equipped jacket. The new jacket will be available in both male and female versions and is due for launch later this year.

This isn’t the first example of a motorcycle manufacturer and apparel company working together on airbag-equipped jackets. Dainese, for example, worked with Ducati to develop a D-Air version of the Multistrada and has a similar arrangement with Peugeot for its Metropolis scooter.

While the Dainese D-Air system uses sensors mounted on the motorcycle, the sensors in Alpinestars’ Tech-Air system are on the jacket itself, which means it can be used on any motorcycle without having to set up a connection. Yes, even non-BMW motorcycles, if you don’t mind the mismatched branding.

The sensors detect when a rider is about to crash and automatically deploys the airbag to help prevent injury. According to Alpinestars, the Tech-Air system can detect an impact from 30-60 milliseconds and can fully-inflate its airbag in 25 milliseconds.

[Source: BMW]

Dennis Chung
Dennis Chung

Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.

More by Dennis Chung

Comments
Join the conversation
Next