Car technology and innovation can help prevent crashes and collisions that result in injuries and fatalities. Road safety is a shared responsibility by car owners, manufacturers, pedestrians, lawmakers, and every road user. Accidents and crashes are caused by several factors, the top three of which include drunk driving, distractions, and drugged driving. The good news is innovative vehicle safety systems can predict and prevent an accident potentially saving lives and averting serious injuries.
Advance Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS)
Several technologies are already fitted in cars and are proven to help in preventing crashes or collisions. One of the most important features is the Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), where the brakes are applied automatically if the sensors detect an impending crash or if there are obstructions.
The pedestrian detection system also senses if there is a pedestrian in the vicinity and will brake to avoid a collision or at lower speeds, mitigates the impact of a crash. FVF acknowledge that personal injuries caused by crashes are devastating and can lead to physical or mental impairments as well as loss of income. With ADAS features available in vehicles, the risks are reduced and can even be prevented.
Another important safety technology is the Electronic Stability Program (ESP) developed by Bosch. The system corrects over-steering and stabilizes the car if there is an evasive action by the driver to avoid an obstacle. Likewise, the adaptive cruise control (ACC) enables you to maintain a safe distance from the car in front of you by using a constant speed. If the vehicle in front slows or speeds up, your car will follow suit.
Driverless Cars Are the Future, But Still a Long Way
Semi-autonomous cars are already in existence. Level 1 autonomy consists of computer assistance functions such as cruise control, stability control and the anti-locking braking system (ABS). With the introduction of the AEB, cars have become partially automated moving up to level 2. Under level 3 of autonomy, the on-board computer in cars can handle two or more simultaneous driving functions such as lane assist or keep, cruise control, AEB, or blind spot detection. These safety features are already available in today’s models.
However, fully automated cars are still in the test phase where a human intervenes in unusual or critical circumstances. From 2060 onwards, it is expected that cars will be fully automated with the computer taking full control of all driving functions. That means cars will no longer have steering wheels, pedals, or joysticks under level 5.
By predicting and preventing human errors, innovative safety technologies can reduce crashes and collisions drastically. Once cars are fully automated in the future, safety is increased and accidents eliminated.