Cypress has introduced easy to install motorcycle helmet display relies on radio system-on-a-chip.

The world's first motorcycle heads up display (HUD) uses a radio-system-on-a-chip IC device from Cypress Semiconductor Corp., San Jose CA, to provide robust wireless connectivity.

SportVue MC1, built around Cypress's WirelessUSB device, and developed by Motion Research Corp., Seattle WA, is an easy-to-install device, mounted onto motorcycle helmets, that displays real-time information inside a driver's visor.

"The backbone of the MC1 is its ability to relay crucial information, such as speed, RPM and gearing, from the bike to the helmet instantaneously," Dominic Dobson, President and Founder of Motion Research, says. "It's easier and faster to read this information from your helmet display while traveling at high speed than continually glancing down at the instrument cluster."

"WirelessUSB gave us the ability to do so without encountering interference from the simultaneous use of mobile phones or two-way radios," he says.

According to Cypress, WirelessUSB provides transparent wireless connectivity, and combines robust performance, interference immunity and ease of use.

"Motion Research has taken the first step in bridging the gap between Top Gun and reality," Deepak Sharma, senior product marketing manager in Cypress's Computation and Consumer Division, says. "SportVue offers users a thrilling experience, and provides performance advantages. Cypress is pleased that WirelessUSB removes installation hassles, which have previously plagued Bluetooth headsets."

WirelessUSB, offered by both Cypress and its second-source partner Atmel Corp., includes a highly integrated radio transceiver plus digital baseband on a single chip. It is said to decrease development time, component count and system cost while improving operating range, power-consumption and latency. Its DSSS (Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum)-based technology is robust to interference.