NYC Helmet

Commissioned by the City of New York, the NYC Bike Helmet is designed with every rider, every season, and a greener environment in mind. As unique and dynamic as the City of New York itself, the NYC Bike Helmet is an innovative modular system consisting of two components: a protective polystyrene inner shell and a soft fabric outer cover with integrated straps. This design allows its owner to customize and personalize the outer cover, which easily separating from the protective shell for easy storage and cleaning.

The design team was asked to create a new kind of bike helmet that provides the citizens of New York a safe, stylish, utilitarian piece of equipment that encourages the healthy choice of riding a bicycle. The design?s versatility, allowing for seasonal transformation, encourages green choices all year around by lessening the demands on the urban transit system and reducing automobile pollution. By sponsoring such a program for cyclists, New York City serves as an example to cities big and small: global warming can be diminished one individual at a time.

The NYC Bike Helmet is both different and better than conventional bike helmets in the following ways:

? Greener Choices. The two-part construction of the helmet has multiple environmental benefits: a) the replaceable fabric cover extends the product lifespan b) this construction also allows multiple riders to share one shell, with each rider snapping in their own fabric cover c) because the NYC bike helmet can be customized for comfort in all seasons, it encourages people to make bicycling their primary transportation year-round.

? Style. New Yorkers care about style. Inspired by a racing aesthetic, conventional helmets have a singular, sporty style that is not appealing to every rider. The NYC Bike Helmet is designed to cater to each individual?s preference of color, material, cut and function, thus allowing for different fashion houses and streetwear designers to add their own versions.

? Versatility. The NYC Bike Helmet is far more versatile than a traditional helmet in terms of both style and function. Not only can the user customize their look, they can also vary the amount of ventilation, the type and size of brim, the amount and placement of padding, insulation, additional reflectors, and many other options.

? Convenience. The nature of a cyclist?s lifestyle is one of constant motion, and in New York City, a cyclist could ride from home in Brooklyn to work in the Fashion District to a dinner out with friends in Soho. People do not want to carry their bike helmets with them everywhere they go, but they also don?t want to leave them exposed to the elements and/or vandalism out on the street. The NYC Bike Helmet gives the cyclist the option to lock only the durable inner shell to their bike while removing the soft outer cover to slip easily and discretely into his or her bag.