With faster cars being built and increased speed limits on roadways, the number of car accidents has also increased significantly. To combat this situation, car manufacturers have invested heavily in technologies designed to increase car safety. Keep reading to discover the 10 new technologies in cars made specially to help you avoid fatal car accidents.
1. Forward Collision Warning
A Forward Collision Warning (FCW) system is a NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) approved and recommended advanced car safety technology designed specifically to monitor your vehicle’s speed as well as the speed of the vehicles in front of you and the distance between both of them. The purpose of the FCW is to detect a potential collision and warn the driver to prevent car accidents. While a FCW system meets strict performance specifications, it does not mean it can take control of the vehicle to avoid accidents.
2. Automatic Emergency Brake
The Automatic Emergency Braking, or AEB, not only detects an impending forward crash with another vehicle with time to spare, it can also stop it from happening. How? The AEB first alerts the driver to urge him to take action and help the driver respond sooner and faster. If the AEB system does not get a response from the driver it will then automatically apply the vehicle’s brakes to prevent or reduce the impact of the crash. Not only can AEB stop moderate car accidents, it can also “soften” bigger ones.
3. Pedestrian Automatic Emergency Brake
One of the most awaited car safety technologies is the Pedestrian Automatic Emergency Brakes (PAEB), or Frontal Pedestrian Impact Mitigation Braking. This system is designed to detect pedestrians crossing in front of the vehicle’s path and takes one of several actions:
- Warn the driver
- Automatically apply brakes when a collision is imminent
A well respected pedestrian accident study determined that most pedestrian accidents happen when a person is either crossing the road or walking along or against traffic. To prevent this type of accident, the PAEB uses a combination of frontal sensors and cameras that, when detecting a pedestrian, warns the driver and then applies the brakes.
Related: Top 10 Car Safety Technologies in History
4. Lane Departure Assist
Not only are frontal collisions being addressed with new car safety technologies, with systems like the Lane Departure Warning (LDW) the sides of your vehicle are also being protected. The Lane Departure Assist uses cameras to monitor the lane markings on streets and highways and detects when the vehicle is drifting out of its lane. Typically, when the vehicle hasn’t turned its turn signal and it’s drifting is the moment when the LDW makes an audio or visual alert to the driver to get back into the lane. The Lane Departure Assist is there to prevent a vehicle from striking another car in an adjoining lane as well as rollovers when the vehicle leaves the road.
5. Backup Camera
The backup camera is probably one of the first safety systems included in high-tech cars and it’s also commonly known as Rearview Video System (RVS). The backup camera is a safety feature that prevents back-over crashes by providing either an image or measurements of the area behind the vehicle. Using ultrasonic waves coming from the sensor system, the backup camera has a field of view directly behind the vehicle and beeps faster as the vehicle approaches an object. More advanced systems even display an image of the rearview in the mirror or the screen of the car. While this system is pretty accurate it doesn’t replace mirrors and turning around.
6. Blind Spot Detection
The Blind Spot Detection (BSD) system uses sonar/radar sensors or digital camera imaging technology smartly placed in rear bumpers or on exterior mirrors to eliminate driver blind spots. It can detect other vehicles in adjacent lanes or in an extended rear zone and alert drivers when other vehicles are passing and might be in the driver’s blind spot or hidden by the car’s roof pillars. The BSD is also helpful when your vehicle is making a lane change, making an audio or visual warning on the exterior mirrors if there are cars in your blind spot that makes your lane change unsafe.
Related: All You Need to Know About Car Accidents
7. 911 Notification
One amazing feature of new car safety tech is the Automatic Crash Notification (ACN), a safety system specially designed to notify emergency responders when an accident has occurred. ACN can be activated by airbag deployment or a sudden deceleration of the vehicle. ACN can automatically connect to a live operator who’ll be able not only to communicate the passengers in the vehicle after a crash, but also provide information about the vehicle and driver to first responders.
8. Active Park Assist
Active Park Assist aids drivers parking their cars by measuring empty parking spots and then steering the vehicle into said spot, while the driver only operates the accelerator and brakes. Active Park Assist is available as an option on most high-tech cars nowadays.
9. Driver-Attention Monitors
It’s no secret that one of the most common reason for car accident is a distracted or sleepy driver. The Driver-Attention Monitor uses several sensors to monitor the vehicle’s movements and how many steering corrections are being performed in a period of time. This is to determine if the driver is fully concentrated and focused. This system alerts the driver and suggest taking a break when it senses signals of a drowsy, unfocused, or distracted driver. Some ultra-modern cars even have driver facing cameras to look for signs of driver fatigue.
Related:What Does a Car Accident Really Cost?
10. Night Vision Assistant
Even though it’s still new technology, the Night Vision Assistants use forward-facing thermographic cameras to look out for animals, pedestrians, and other vehicles that can’t easily be seen by the naked eye during nighttime. The special camera displays images on the car’s windshield and it may even send visual or audio alerts to let drivers know of upcoming obstacles.
Whether you choose to purchase a car that includes some or all of these car safety features, it won’t be long until every car is outfitted with these high-tech safety systems. Sometimes it is safer to stay a step ahead of other drivers and invest in an ultra-safe car!
