(via) Swedish designers Anna Haupt and Terese Alstin raised over $10,000,000 in venture capital to develop their Hövding project, which they also goes by the name of Invisible Bicycle Helmet. The project began in 2005 as their Masters in Industrial Design thesis. The goal was to create a product so that “adult cyclists would voluntarily start protecting their heads on the roads without the law ordering them to do so.” Press play on the short film above. Fascinating.
Complete Hövding RO has two parts: a collar and a shell of model Raven Obscure. The collar is made in a black, waterproof and dirt-resistant functional fabric. The collar is the actual head protection and encloses the airbag and the other components. Shell RO is sewn in a black polyamide functional fabric of very high quality. The shell is washable in 30°. The shell is attached to the collar with two zips, one on the inside of the collar and one on the outside. You can use the shell to vary the look of your Hövding from one day to the next, mixing and matching to tie in with your look or suit or your mood.
Wearing one won’t mess up your hair, which means they can charge $615 per.