INNOVATION
Filter helmets
As India's capital of New Delhi prepares for winter - and the accompanying season of acrid smog - the government is promoting a motorcycle helmet fitted with filters and a fan at the back that it says can remove 80% of pollutants. State agencies have pumped thousands of dollars into Shellios Technolabs, a startup that started working on the helmet in 2016, the year of the first headlines about the filthy air that makes New Delhi nearly unbreathable from mid-December to February, as the heavy cold traps dust, vehicle emissions and smoke from burning crop waste in nearby states. The helmet consists of an air purification unit, fitted with a replaceable filter membrane and a fan powered by a battery that runs six hours and can be charged through a microUSB slot. Sales of the helmet began in 2019, and tests on New Delhi's streets by an independent laboratory confirmed it can keep more than 80% of pollutants out of users' nostrils. A 2019 test report shows the helmet cut levels of lung-damaging PM 2.5 airborne particles to 8.1 micrograms per cubic metre from 43.1 micrograms outside. Each helmet retails at 4,500 rupees ($56), or nearly four times the cost of a regular one, effectively putting the device beyond the reach of many riders in India. Since the weight of 1.5 kg (3.3 lb) is heavier than existing devices, Shellios has also tied up with a big manufacturer to develop a lighter version from a thermoplastic material rather than fibreglass, a step that will also cut the cost.
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