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| Cowboy electric bikes avoid air pollution |
Belgian e-bike maker Cowboy is committed to helping cyclists avoid pollution on the go by adding a new navigation feature that allows them to map routes based on air quality in the company's latest apps for iOS and Android.
Air pollution is a major cause of silent death around the world. Poor air quality can lead to stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and other chronic respiratory diseases.
The World Health Organization claims that air pollution causes 4.2 million deaths every year.
Cyclists face this problem every day, but the Belgian cyclist Cowboy is always ready to help, as cyclists can now choose the fastest and healthiest route to their destination.
This feature is made possible by integrating air quality data from BreezoMeter, the same company that provides air quality data for the Apple Weather app.
This allows the Cowboy app to use local air quality data to design the lane and direct the driver on the cleanest route to get to their destination.
Cowboy said it was the first app to offer quality air travel in their app with a data resolution of 5 meters. This is enough to make it easier for commuters to drive on polluted roads in densely populated cities like Amsterdam.
BreezoMeter's ability to measure air quality in such detail includes some speculation as there are no physical sensors above 5 meters across the globe.
However, BreezoMeter's claim was supported by a former senior scientist in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Dr. (Gabriella Katz), with support.
The BreezoMeter model starts with measuring data from more than 47,000 sensors around the world and then combines it with other data such as real-time traffic, satellite images, smoke, wind and weather, using custom algorithms and machine learning technologies.
It's worth noting that BreezoMeter said its model measures air pollution every 12 minutes caused by 10 million traffic congestions in more than 30,000 cities around the world.
The company takes air quality measurements prior to reporting to ensure accuracy, followed by a quality assurance process.
For cowboys, it definitely makes sense to include an air pollution model that relies heavily on automobile traffic, since most people who drive in traffic are fully aware of the pollution produced by an internal combustion engine if it fails.