The Intelligent Speed Bump (BIV)* by Badennova

The company Badennova S.L. from Málaga (Spain) has developed a pioneering road safety product, an intelligent speed bump named BIV. When vehicles travelling at the appropriate speed pass over the top, the intelligent speed bump provides no resistance and, as a consequence, does not cause any damage. For cars moving at excessive speed, however, the speed bump hardens and therefore provides the same resistance as any standard speed bump.

This behaviour is due to a non-Newtonian fluid which constitutes the filling material of the intelligent speed bump. These kinds of fluids behave differently than water. This means that their flow properties cannot be described by a single constant value of viscosity. There are different types of non-Newtonian fluids. The intelligent speed bump contains a so-called shear-thickening fluid (also known as dilatants).

Dilatants are suspensions whose viscosity increases with the rate of shear, i.e., the strain rate raises with the rate of shear. The dilation effect occurs when closely packed particles are combined with enough liquid to fill the gaps between them. At low velocities, the liquid acts as a lubricant, so the non-Newtonian liquid flows easily. At higher velocities, the liquid is unable to fill the gaps created between particles, and friction greatly increases, causing an increase in viscosity.

As a consequence, the non-Newtonian material allows the speed bump to change from a soft to a solid state according to the vehicle’s speed. The fluid is biodegradable, non-toxic, non-contaminant and very unlikely to leak out thanks to a high-quality enclosing material. It is a plastic material, which has been developed by the Spanish institution Andaltec, one of the industry’s leaders in plastic technology. Also, this material has proven to be especially resistant against unfavourable weather conditions, vandalism and wear-out.

The intelligent speed bump by Badennova S.L. is a worldwide registered and patented product.

The installation of the BIV is particularly quick an easy using a metal plate and screws in order to fix the intelligent speed bump to the ground. Consequently, construction works are not necessary. Moreover, its design can be calibrated for any speed limit or road type.


ADVANTAGES OF THE INTELLIGENT SPEED BUMP
Since the intelligent speed bump does not constitute an obstacle for those vehicles travelling at the permitted speed, Badennova´s innovation has many advantages over the conventional speed bumps:

- It reduces the possibility of car collision accidents due to rapid breaking as a driver approaches the speed bump
- It prevents back and/or neck injuries caused by sudden jumps
- It decreases the damage to the vehicle as both spring suspension and mechanical parts that do not suffer any impact.
- Reduced CO2 emissions due to the avoidance of sudden braking and subsequent acceleration.
- Less noise as the sound of braking before a speed bump is reduced