SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
The disproportionately high number of motorcycle-related traffic accidents may be linked to the way the human brain processes—or fails to process—information, according to new research published in Human Factors, "Allocating Attention to Detect Motorcycles: The Role of Inattentional Blindness." The study examines how the phenomenon of inattentional blindness, or a person's failure to notice an unexpected object located in plain sight, might explain the prevalence of looked-but-failed-to-see (LBFTS) crashes, the most common type of collision involving motorcycles.
According to human factors/ergonomics researchers Kristen Pammer, Stephanie Sabadas, and Stephanie Lentern, LBFTS crashes are particularly troublesome because, despite clear conditions and the lack of other hazards or distractions, drivers will look in the direction of the oncoming motorcycle - and in some cases appear to look directly at the motorcycle - but still pull out into its path.
The study authors suggest training drivers to be more alert for motorcycles.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 06 2018, @06:44PM
One can make a thin A-pillar that will handle a rollover crash.
One can't do that out of cheap steel, with padding, with a handle, with an airbag, and still keep it attractive.
The sort of material to use is probably a metal-matrix composite. For example, this is what is used for the F/A-18 nose gear. Picture something like a carbon fiber composite, but with nickel instead of epoxy.
Another option is a single-crystal superalloy, as used in jet turbine blades. The tradeoff is a bit different, gaining some types of strength and losing others.
The A-pillars should be asymmetric, so that the driver sees them edge-on. (parts must be distinct for left-driver and right-driver countries) The padding should be minimal. The windows need to attach in a way that doesn't effectively widen the pillar with gaskets. You can't put an airbag in an A-pillar.
Oh, don't forget the other pillars. The driver-side A-pillar is most critical, but they all matter.