This clever Skoda bike bell gets through even the best noise-cancelling tech

The Skoda DuoBell is a claimed first-of-its-kind bicycle bell that can be heard even through noise-cancelling headphones.

Despite being a fully analogue solution, the bell hits a sweet spot that can be heard by riders, pedestrians and drivers using ANC headphones, for a safer experience.

While road news is usually about self-driving cars and even quantum battery tech, Skoda's new bell is a smaller but no less exciting innovation. It was designed as part of a cyclist and pedestrian safety research project between the car brand and scientists at the University of Salford.

The result is a clever cycling accessory that can be heard even over the most impressive noise-cancelling headphones.

Škoda DuoBell - The First Bike Bell Designed To Penetrate Noise-Cancelling Headphones - YouTube

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The tech can overcome the powerful ANC effects of headphones. This is done by finding a "safety gap" in the frequency band which can penetrate in- and over-ears.

This spot, between 750 and 780 Hz, is where the bell is tuned. There is a second resonator, hence the bell's name, which is tuned to a higher frequency.

Using a special hammer mechanism, this delivers rapid, irregular strikes on the bell. The result is sound waves generated that ANC algorithms are unable to process quickly enough to suppress.

Tests found that pedestrians wearing noise-cancelling headphones had up to 22 metres of extra reaction distance when this bell was used. That's the crucial safety margin that could mean the difference between a safe walk and a potential collision.

Real world testing on London streets by Deliveroo couriers found the bell to be effective, with many testers saying they wanted to keep it.

Skoda DuoBell: when will it be available?

The Skoda DuoBell has been announced as a research project result, with real world models only used for testing at this stage.

When this will hit the market and be available to buy – and at what price – has yet to be announced. Skoda says it plans to release the research results so this can be commercialised in the future.

For more information, head over to Skoda.