The sci-fi motorcycle helmet of the future is ready for you today

Looking to innovate in the motorcycle helmet segment is Zyon, a Spanish startup that wants to offer more than just impact protection when you're out on the road. The Zyon helmet is also designed to protect against pollution too.

The company says that motorbike riders are more exposed to air pollutants than car drivers and that's one of the things that the Zyon helmet wants to tackle. Thanks to a four-layer filter that will remove pollutants and allergens, the air you breathe should be cleaner.

It's called the Breathe Safe System, with every helmet coming with four filters you can swap out. There's also accompanying app will monitor the condition of the filter to advise when it needs changing.

Each filter should last one to three months, and contains a HEPA layer and activated carbon.

The rider can adjust the airflow (low, medium, high speed) to help regulate the air that's getting in and the temperature in the helmet. It's bespoke, so you'll have to buy replacements from the company itself, so yes, there's an ongoing cost to ownership.

In addition to air filtration, the helmet uses MIPS technology aiming to reduce the impact passing through into the brain. This is an established technology found in other helmets too. It's a modular helmet design with an integrated sun visor.

There's also an LED light on the rear of the helmet to help you stay visible on the road, while an embedded chip in the helmet provides the link to the app on your smartphone.

This will not only monitor the status of the filter, but keep an eye on the status of the helmet if there's an impact, while also being able to report on air quality and riding statistics.

The first helmet that protects against air pollution - ZYON Helmets - YouTube

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The Zyon helmet comes in five colours - black, green, white, blue, grey - and a full range of sizes. It's priced at €799 and is available to reserve today.

Air filters in helmets is an emerging area, with the Shellios Puros offering a HEPA filter system, but it's not something that's appearing from mainstream manufacturers just yet, despite these filters being fairly common in other product categories.

That might be because the rest of the helmet isn't sealed thanks to the huge hole you stuff your head through to put it on. It also raises the question of what happens if this startup company doesn't get off the ground – because those filters are bespoke, you might find yourself with a problem if the supply dries up.