BlackBerry and Damon team up to create tech-filled motorcycle

Telecoms giant BlackBerry has been called in to help electric motorcycle maker Damon create the Hypersport Pro motorcycle. The firm is bringing their expertise to the table to help the team at Damon to build a motorcycle that features advanced warning systems and collision detection alerts.

The system the two parties have come up with is a type of co-pilot system, that incorporates radar, a 1080p camera, force sensors, and a telematics array. The thought of BlackBerry, who are basically the has-beens of the mobile phone world, creating such a complex and important part of the bike may seem strange. But the firm already has their QNX fitted into more than 150 million vehicles such as Audi and Toyota.

Damon claims that the co-pilot system will work with radar, cameras, non-visual sensors, and a 360-degree camera. If any accident hazards are detected by these sensors, the system will alert you to the danger via handlebar vibrations (haptic warnings) and illuminated warning lights to prevent a possible accident.

Speaking to TechRepublic, Jay Giraud, Chief Executive of Damon Motorcycles, said:

"When you look at the forensics of [motorcycle] accidents in North America, Europe, and Asia, we overlapped all of the data to find that the common parallels. We saw that three-quarters of all motorcycle accidents occur in intersections, and two-thirds of the accidents are caused by drivers," Giraud said. "Even though non-motorcyclists like to blame motorcyclists for speed or being crazy, riders are pretty tame, well-behaved people. We're just not seen."

Damon Motorcycles will present the prototype of Hypersport Pro in CES 2020, where potential customers can try the bike out in a VR simulation. The bike will be located on the BlackBerry stand and will also start pre-order purchase then. Pricing for the machine, pre-sale or otherwise, is as yet TBC.