Bird’s Smart Sidewalk Protection Keeps Pedestrians Safe From Micromobility Vehicles

Most cities have adopted micromobility vehicles, often in the form of electric scooters, to get around efficiently. As with any mobility platforms, these tend to be abused by riding in areas other than the designated paths. As a result, pedestrians and riders can be injured from accidents. To help keep both safe, mobility startup Bird has developed Smart Sidewalk Protection technology, which is designed to prevent micromobility vehicles from operating on sidewalks and footpaths.

The technology was developed in collaboration with u-blox to create an integrated sensor fusion system capable of tracking location with centimeter-level accuracy. The system leverages u-blox’s ZED-F9R dual-band multi-constellation GNSS receiver (dead reckoning module), which is designed to process real-time vehicle data, including wheel speed, IMU sensor data including acceleration and spatial orientation. The module has been adapted for use with Bird’s e-scooters by using dynamic models of the scooter’s movements.

The u-blox dead reckoning module, combined with Bird’s integrated sensor suite, prevents the e-scooters from entering sidewalk and footpath areas by using the technology to determine where the scooter is located at any given time. The system utilizes sidewalk mapping as well, and once the scooter enters a restricted area, its electric motor is shut down, allowing the rider to come to a safe stop and walk the vehicle back to the roadway or designated riding area. The Smart Sidewalk Protection system is currently being trialed in Milwaukee and San Diego, and if successful, will be deployed in Madrid at some point in 2022.