Skiing is dangerous and a wipeout on the slopes could leave you seriously injured. Dainese has managed to make that slightly safer by fitting an airbag system into a jersey that doesn't look like it adds much bulk or weight to a skier's outfit.

The D-Air Ski has actually been in development for the past three years, Dainese finally has a competition ready working prototype to show off and it uses three accelerometers, three gyroscopes and a GPS uint. The garment will be able to inflate an eight liter airbag in less than 100 milliseconds after a crash is detected.



Dainese used data from 283 downhill runs and over 700 minutes of skiers on the slopes to develop an algorithm to detect crashes. It will only trigger the airbags when a crash or fall occurs. It is designed to be worn by high-speed downhill skiers and it knows the difference between the G-forces experienced in turns versus a wipeout. The jersey is supposedly smart enough to tell the difference.

Pricing and availability haven't been announced just yet—but this looks like a good way to ensure you don't go home with some broken bones.  [Dainese via Gizmag]