It's just a fact of life — we are living longer. And it's
not just because of tofu, sunscreen and medical breakthroughs.
Automakers are to thank (or curse) for this as much as doctors, since
they are competitively blending performance and creature comforts with
cutting-edge safety technology that tries to stay one step ahead of you —
and everyone else on the road.
While pedestrian-friendly bumpers and cars that can drive themselves may seem like the faraway future of automotive safety, so did many of the features that are now industry standards for this year's models. It makes us wonder if the Jeep Grand Cherokee Concierge concept from 2002 — with an integrated heart defibrillator — might catch on as part of the next wave of safety.
Below are our top 10 choices for safety technologies.
While pedestrian-friendly bumpers and cars that can drive themselves may seem like the faraway future of automotive safety, so did many of the features that are now industry standards for this year's models. It makes us wonder if the Jeep Grand Cherokee Concierge concept from 2002 — with an integrated heart defibrillator — might catch on as part of the next wave of safety.
Below are our top 10 choices for safety technologies.
1. Tire-pressure monitoring
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has required
that all U.S. passenger vehicles weighing 10,000 pounds or less be
equipped with a tire-pressure monitoring system by the 2008 model year.
But it's already a safety feature in most new autos. (For example, BMW
offers this as standard equipment on all of its models.) Sensors at the
wheels are able to alert you if the air pressure is too low by an
audible warning, a light on the instrument panel, or both. You may also
see more cars with run-flat tires (the Corvette, among the current
offerings), which allow a vehicle to continue to run at a relatively
high rate of speed for 50-plus miles.
2. Adaptive cruise control/collision mitigation
Modern cruise control goes beyond just maintaining a constant
speed. Thanks to sensors and the use of radar, cruise control can now
adjust the throttle and brakes to keep a safe distance from the vehicle
in front of you if there are changes in traffic speed or if a slowpoke
cuts in. If the system senses a potential collision, it typically will
brake hard and tighten the seatbelts. Once it knows the lane is clear or
traffic has sped up, it will return your car to its original cruising
speed, all without your input. Of course, you may override the system by
touching the brakes. The Mercedes-Benz and Maybach systems go by a less
obvious name: Distronic.
3. Blind-spot detection/side assist/collision warning
This technology is designed to alert you to cars or objects in
your blind spot during driving or parking, or both. Usually it will
respond when you put on your turn signal; if it detects something in the
way, it may flash a light in your mirror, cause the seat or steering
wheel to vibrate, or sound an alarm. This is more of a short-range
detection system.
4. Lane-departure warning/wake-you-up safety
This is similar to blind-spot/side-assist technology but with
more range. It judges an approaching vehicle's speed and distance to
warn you of potential danger if you change lanes. It can also warn if it
determines your car is wandering out of the lane, which could be useful
if you become distracted. This could come in the form of a vibration
through the seat or steering wheel, or an alarm. Down the road expect
lane-departure warning to even be able to monitor body posture, head
position and eye activity to decide if the driver is falling asleep and
the vehicle is behaving erratically. At that point, the system may even
be capable of slowing the car down and engaging stability control. Just
in case.
5. Rollover prevention/mitigation
Most automakers offer an electronic stability control system, and some offer a preparation
system (seatbelts tighten, rollbars extend). However, what we're
talking about is more intelligent than that. If the system senses a
potential rollover (such as if you whip around a corner too fast or
swerve sharply), it will apply the brakes and modulate throttle as
needed to help you maintain control. DaimlerChrysler calls it Electronic
Roll Mitigation, Ford named it Roll Stability Control, and GM's is
Proactive Roll Avoidance. Range Rover's is Active Roll Mitigation, while
Volvo's is called Roll-Over Protection System. But they all have the
same goal.
6. Occupant-sensitive/dual-stage airbags
All humans are not created equal, and airbags are evolving to
compensate in the form of low-risk, multistage and occupant-sensitive
deployment. Technology can now sense the different sizes and weights of
occupants as well as seatbelt usage, abnormal seating position (such as
reaching for the radio or bending to pick something off the floor),
rear-facing child seats and even vehicle speed. While driver, passenger
and side curtain airbags are nothing new, sensing airbags are popping up
(so to speak) everywhere.
7. Emergency brake assist/collision mitigation
This brake technology is different from an antilock braking
system or electronic brakeforce distribution, in that it recognizes when
the driver makes a panic stop (a quick shift from gas to brake pedal)
and will apply additional brake pressure to help shorten the stopping
distance. It may also work in conjunction with the smart cruise control
or stability control system in some vehicles if it senses a potential
collision. It is often called brake assist, although BMW, for example,
refers to it as Dynamic Brake Control.
8. Adaptive headlights and/or night-vision assist
Night vision can be executed in different forms, such as infrared
headlamps or thermal-imaging cameras. But no matter the science, the
goal is the same: to help you see farther down the road and to spot
animals, people or trees in the path — even at nearly 1,000 feet away.
An image is generated through a cockpit display, brightening the objects
that are hard to see with the naked eye. Adaptive headlights follow the
direction of the vehicle (bending the light as you go around corners).
They may also be speed-sensitive (changing beam length or height), or
compensate for ambient light.
9. Rearview camera
Rearview cameras not only protect your car, but also protect
children and animals from accidental back-overs. Backing up your car has
graduated from side mirrors tilting down or causing chirps and beeps to
real-time viewing. New-school tech involves a camera that works with
the navigation system to provide a wide-open shot of what's happening
behind you to help with parking or hooking up a trailer.
10. Emergency response
There are a variety of ways vehicles now and in the future will
handle an emergency situation. For example, DaimlerChrysler's Enhanced
Accident Response System (EARS) turns on interior lighting, unlocks
doors and shuts off fuel when airbags deploy, while Volkswagen's also
switches on the hazards and disconnects the battery terminal from the
alternator. In addition, GM's OnStar and BMW Assist both alert their
respective response centers of the accident and make crash details
available to emergency personnel.
source
https://www.edmunds.com/car-reviews/top-10/top-10-high-tech-car-safety-technologies.html