26 | AUSTRALIAN ROAD RIDERNEWS
A
prilia has made a couple of hi-tech
leaps into the future, where the
bike talks to your helmet and phone.
The Italian motorcycle company
has announced a collaboration with
American helmet company Skully, which
is releasing the world’s fi rst commercially
available helmet with head-up display
and has developed Aprilia Multimedia
Platform (aMP) which connects the bike
to your iPhone or Android phone.
The partnership with Skully will
help develop new forms of rider-vehicle
interaction for V4-MP, Piaggio Group’s
multimedia platform found on the
Aprilia RSV4 and Tuono 1100. This willprovide bike information to the Skully
helmet visor screen so riders won’t have
to take their eyes off the road.
That’s off in the future, but right
now you can add aMP to your Aprilia
Caponord with a $341 retrofi t. The aMP
app is available through iTunes and talks
to the aMP platform fi ed to your bike.
It transforms the rider’s phone into
a virtual, real time, multifunction
on-board computer allowing the
rider to choose between speedometer,tachometer, engine power and torque,
instant and average fuel consumption,
suggested gear selection, longitudinal
acceleration along with an extended
trip computer. With the help of
gyroscopes and vehicle telemetry, the
application is also able to calculate the
rider’s lean angles.
The aMP application will fl ash to
indicate the intervention of Aprilia
Traction Control (aTC) and the rider can
also set a shi light at their favourite
revs. The aMP application will also
store the journey data so the rider can
analyse their trip and their riding form.
However, riders should be careful as
the information may incriminate them
should the police or insurance company
gain access.
The app also notifi es the rider of low
fuel and the GPS function identifi es
the nearest fuel stations and even the
nearest Aprilia dealer. It also records
the position of the motorcycle when the
engine is turned off in case you forget
where you parked it.
Together with the Skully helmet, this
could really give the rider total control ...
or information overload!T
he Australian Motorcycle Dealer
Association (AMDA) has been
formed to provide a more equitable
arrangement between manufacturers
and dealers.
FCAI motorcycle spokesman Rhys
Griffi ths says most riders won’t notice
much diff erence, but claims it is an
important agreement for the industry.
Under the agreement between
state and territory motor trades
associations, automobile chambers
of commerce and their respective
motorcycle industry divisions and
other prominent motorcycle retailers,
there will be improved national
representation on issues impacting the
motorcycle retail sector.
The AMDA will be headed up by 40-year industry veteran Stuart Strickland,
the former boss of Honda Australia.
Australian Motor Industry Federation
CEO Richard Dudley says a professional
and sustainable Australian motorcycle
retail sector is “an important cog in
Australia’s economy. The association will
have the ability to represent retailers
proactively, eff ectively and effi ciently
with all levels of government, businessand the community in its own right by
drawing on the considerable resources
of the state and territory associations
and as part of the national federation,”
he says.
Australia has 700 authorised
motorcycle dealers and more than
2000 related motorcycle industry
businesses, employing 15,000 people and
contributing $3.6 billion to the economy.“The association will have the ability to represent retailers
proactively, effectively and efficiently with all levels of
government, business and the community in its own right
by drawing on the considerable resources of the state and
territory associations and as part of the national federation”A NEW INDUSTRY AGREEMENT
EYES INTO THE FUTURE
“This will provide bike information to the Skully helmet visor
screen so riders won’t have to take their eyes off the road.”■ The future is here!ARR112_010-026_News.indd 26ARR112_010-026_News.indd 26 2/3/2015 9:48:11 AM2/3/2015 9:48:11 AM