
This handlebar-mounted unit is being used by police on bikes in the US to detect when cars pass them too close. The evidence is recorded and used to prosecute them.
Time after time cyclists have posted videos recorded on Irish roads showing cars and trucks passing them far too close, and often at high speed.
And there is a campaign - Stayin' Alive at 1.5 - underway in the Republic to introduce a minimum passing distance of 1.5 metres when vehicles are overtaking cyclists.
But in other countries those laws already exist, including the United States.
And in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the police have begun using ultra sound technology to enforce the 91cm (36 inches) passing rule.
The ultra sound devices have been fitted onto the handlebars of bikes being used by police officers on cycle patrols.
As cars pass the officers, the ultra sound sensor records how far the vehicles are away. And if they are within the 36 inch legal limit, the alarm is triggered.
The illegal passing distance pops up on a small screen on the officers' devices.
And a GoPro camera, also mounted on the bars, records the illegal passing distance and the car as it overtakes.
The footage can be presented in court if the police decide to bring a prosecution.
And if the officers on the bikes can catch up with the offending motorists in traffic, they can have a word and encourage them to be more careful; with the bar-mounted evidence to show those who argue the toss.
Meanwhile, the Stayin' Alive at 1.5 campaign has just received a boost with news that the new president of Cycling Ireland Ciaran McKenna has signed its petition.
It can be signed online by following this link and has already been signed by almost 2,500 people.
Catching them red-handed
