A student at Brunel University has created a device that warns car
drivers when motorbikes are nearby. The invention, designed by Sam
Bairstow, an industrial design student, aims to reduce motorcyclist
fatalities involving cars. I-SAW, Intelligent Situation Awareness,
allows the motorbike to communicate with vehicles on the road using
radio frequency transmissions. A transmitter under the motorbike seat
relays information to all other vehicles within the radius of the
transmitted signal. The car driver, who would have a receiver placed
on the car dashboard, is initially alerted to the motorcyclist's
presence via visual LED readout. However, if at any time the car
driver performs a manoeuvre whilst the motorbike is in range, the
driver is further warned by an auditory alarm and vibration through the
steering wheel. Sam Bairstow, who came up with the idea after
commuting on his motorbike, said that by increasing safety, he believed
more people would consider travelling by motorbike.

Source: TEC July 2007