According to the website Stolen Bike Statistics over 500,000 bikes were stolen in the UK over the past five years. This figure is also understated. According to John Moss who compiled these stat “It is largely accepted that only 1 in 5 bike thefts are reported to the police, therefore the bike thefts figures can be considered 5 times higher than reported.”
These numbers are about to plummet. Designers at Jawbone and Boeing have developed a solar powered bicycle lock, called Skylock, that works via Bluetooth connectivity to your phone – and the phones of friends you select. One hour of sunshine provides a weeks power and should your bike be noticably jarred Skylock will emmediately send you an alert to your smartphone. The lock uses military grade material giving you enough time to get to your bike before it’s nicked. And, as if that’s not enough should you get doored by a carelss driver or loose it on a rain-slicked road, Skylock will notify friends and family so they can come to your aid. The best thing of all is the price, at around £90 for a lock it compares very favourably with traditional high-end locks!
Two things for the future.
- Skylock is benefting from the fast growing shareconmy. Bikes are one of our most under-utilised assets, by allowing friends easy and secure access to your bike you can park it and let approved people share your ride. Skylock allows for instant ride sharing
- By linking your bike lock to the Internet of Things, bike theft fast become a thing of the past. We are entering a world were our assets will tell us when dubious people are tinkering with them. They will be able to alert authorities. In the future products like Skylock will make theft a pointless pastime!
