By Anna Osokina
The project has received an award from the UK’s Cambridge University, and is among the top-100 best innovations in Great Britain. Artem Stavenko and Kirill Chikeyuk say that the idea was created not just to design new technology but to ‘represent Belarus’. Four light-emitting diodes placed on the spokes of a wheel are operated by a computer microprocessor; as the wheel rotates, our brain perceives a complete picture. All formats of video and images are supported and it’s possible to use the system in most weather conditions — down to minus 10 degrees Celsius.
British investors have offered a significant sum to develop the project, but this would involve the duo losing their ownership over decision-making. Accordingly, they are currently relying on their own resources. For the coming year, they have the opportunity to collaborate with some well-known European companies to complete the project, which has already involved a great many programmers and engineers. “We previously had the right to use American technologies while the past year of hard work has created a fully-fledged Belarusian version,” emphasises Artem.
The young men have already submitted a patent request and are hoping that their idea will find use in the development of bicycle infrastructure. They also dream that the project may be useful in preparation for the World Ice Hockey Championship. At present, the development is used only for promotional purposes, being expensive, but it should be possible to make the technology affordable to all in good time.
