Flowsignals

Aim

Flowsignals, the worst invention ever on Dragons' den or a potential life saver that is urgently needed... You decide!

Flowsignals are an innovative use of the LED technology to provide the safety warnings that are needed to prevent death and serious injury on our roads.

Here are two of the problems Flowsignals will solve. Watch my pitch to find out more...

1. Some traffic light junctions allow vehicles to go in one direction only but at others they move in both. In the absence of a clear warning to tell drivers turning right when the oncoming traffic has a 'green light', mistakes are made and collisions occur.
2. In theory, if you fit a no-entry sign either side of a roadway, no one will drive down it. In practice, many drivers simply don't see the signs and drive straight past. The results can be head-on collision carnage.

Why Flowsignals will work.

No great learning curve, an almost intuitive hazard warning from an array of moving coloured lights with no language barrier, red for danger, amber for a warning.  Only the width of a pole they can be mounted almost anywhere..  An upward flowing sequence to warn of hazards ahead and a downward flowing sequence to warn of hazards coming towards you. Simple.

Using our eyesight to its best advantage

To read a fixed road sign you have to look directly at it, but moving lights can be detected anywhere in our eyesight. The simple repeating illumination pattern of Flowsignals can be seen and recognised at the extremities of our vision. An effective signal to warn of hazards that can be assimilated by drivers without taking their eyes off the road ahead.

The market

Many people are dying on the roads every year because the underlying causes have not been addressed. Unfortunately our roads are still being engineered to a set of rules from the 1960's with the perception being that they work and are therefore safe. In December the government published its new road safety policy promising a 'safe systems approach' to road safety delivery. At last some of the multi-million pound road safety budget may be spent on directly tackling the root causes of the accidents and proactively applying new safer solutions.  A market will exist in the UK for products that will cure the problems; Flowsignals.

Originally invented to prevent danger at traffic lights, there are many other road safety applications for Flowsignals. Linked to the latest detection technology their simple unmissable warning displays could play a key role in preventing accidents at dangerous junctions, blind bends and accident black spots.

For years the authorities have stood back and watched people die in what are in essence the same accidents, occurring throughout the road network. It is now time to look past allocating blame to the individuals involved, to design and install the safety guards on the roads.

This project closed unsuccessfully on 12th August 2016