Bengaluru man designs ‘air-conditioned’ helmet for bike riders

Bengaluru-based Sandeep Dahiya retrofits certain hardware into helmets, and using a cooling mechanism, the temperature can be lowered.

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Love riding your bike but find the sweating and suffocation the helmet a bummer? Bengaluru-based Sandeep Dahiya, who has owned a Harley Davidson for a decade now, had the same concerns.

So, the mechanical engineer decided to do something about it. And after 4.5 years of work, he has now come up with an ‘air-conditioned’ helmet.

“I know from experience how annoying the heat and sweat in a helmet can be in. That’s why many riders are seen keeping their helmets on the fuel tank and riding,” Sandeep tells TNM.

How the helmet works

Once the hardware is retrofitted into a helmet, and the cooling mechanism is activated, the temperature inside the helmet can be 12 degrees lower than the outside temperature, Sandeep says.

The pipes and wiring inside the helmet are attached to an external device that draws 12 volts of current from the bike battery, once attached. This ‘air-conditioner’ works on solid state cooling, that is, unlike in conventional coolers, it doesn’t have a compressor and does not require any water. It only has thermoelectric components.

While the cooler comes in a small knapsack that can be worn on the back, once the device is switched on, and the cooling mode is switched on, it sends cool air into the helmet. There is a heating mode as well.

The total weight added to the helmet, with the hardware retrofitted, is only up to 150 grams. And the total unit weighs about 1.8 kilograms.

Sandeep explains how the helmet works in the video below.

Get helmets customised

Sandeep and his wife run a company called AeeDEA, where he sells the accessories he built (including adjustable silencer and a windshield with modifiable height), based on demand. They do not have much of an inventory, and it’s more of a passion project than anything else, Sandeep says.

As for the helmet, for which he has already applied for a patent, Sandeep plans to do a soft launch at the upcoming 8th Southern HOG (Harley Owners Group) Ride that is happening in Hyderabad on September 20. “There were eight previous versions of this, and this is the one I want my friends to test out,” Sandeep says proudly.

Interested people would have to send AeeDEA their helmets to attach the hardware. Attaching a cable to the battery of the bike, for the helmet’s cooling device to draw power, can easily be done by the rider.

In the future, Sandeep plans to make other variants, too. “The same air conditioning device can be used for jackets as well. In future, we will launch that, and a helmet that can give a spray of cool air on the face when the visor is shut. We’re also planning a version that can be used by the rider and the pillion both, which will be powered by a solar unit.”