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  • Writer's pictureRafael Marañón

Trends in Auto Tech (part 2)

List of driver assistance features available today


Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) enable enhanced situational awareness and vehicle control for easier and safer driving experience.


Most ADAS includes a combination of sensors (cameras, radar systems, ultrasounds, LIDAR and GPS) and artificial intelligence software (computer vision based on deep learning algorithms).

While Tesla think that laser is not the ‘sauce’ for autonomous driving, others like Google argument that in low-lighting conditions where cameras alone do not work, LIDAR is required.


Part 1 of this blog post covered problem and emerging solutions, industry transition, and investments in Auto Tech. In Part 2, you can find the list of technologies and features:


NON-INTERVENTION are the features that only monitor and warn drivers without controlling any part of the vehicle.


Forward Collision Warning (FCW): Alerts the drivers to a potential collision with a vehicle detected ahead. Uses cameras, radar, or laser (or some combination thereof) to scan the road ahead and to alert the driver if the distance to a vehicle ahead is closing too quickly. The systems alert the driver with an audible, haptic (touch), and/or visual cue. According to the NHTSA, out of the 6 million car accidents that happen on U.S. roads every year, over 40% of them (2.5 million) are rear-end collisions. FCW alone reduced rear-end striking crash involvement rates by 23%.


Lane Departure Warning (LDW): Alerts drivers when their vehicle is about to unintentionally cross into another lane with a visual and audio or sensory cue. A small front camera detect the distance of road surface markings and then analyzes that information to determine if the vehicle is about to drift across said markings. If the turn signal is not activated when this happens, the driver is alerted by a visual warning and an audible tone or a vibration. In 2015, nearly 13,000 people died in single-vehicle run-off-road, head-on, and sideswipe crashes where a passenger vehicle left the lane unintentionally


High Speed Warning (HSW): Alert driver when speeding. Coordinates the car’s position, via GPS, with a database of speed limit information to alert drivers if they’re speeding. This helps drivers maintain a safe driving speed.


Blind Spot Monitor: alerts drivers when there may be something located in their blind spot.


Rear Cross Traffic Alert: provides an alert to the driver that traffic is approaching from the left or right when the vehicle is in reverse.


Traffic-sign recognition (TSR): the vehicle is able to recognize the traffic signs put on the road e.g. “red traffic light” or “school area” or “turn ahead”, and alert driver in case speed or directions is not appropriate.


INTERVENTION are the features that in addition to monitor and warn, also control the braking, and steering of the vehicle.


Autonomous Emergency Break (AEB): Automatically activates the vehicle’s brake, to some degree, when necessary. Use sensors, cameras, radar, and LIDAR to detect an impending vehicle collision. Systems vary from pre-charging brakes, slowing the vehicle to lessen damage or even stop the vehicle before a collision occurs. FCW with AEB reduced rear-end striking crash involvement rates by 39%


Collision Avoidance Assist (CAA): Helps the driver steer around an obstacle in a critical situation. Uses data from the two radar sensors and the front camera to calculate a suitable evasive maneuver corridor. After a warning, it applies a slight steering torque.


Lane Keeping Assist (LKA): Acts to automatically move the vehicle back into the lane. The car will either apply the brakes on the opposite front wheel or use steering input to make the correction. A driver who simply forgot to use the turn signal can easily overcome this by actively steering the car in the desired direction. In model year 2017, lane departure warning was available on 63% of new U.S. passenger vehicle series equipment (5% as standard and 57% as optional)


Speed Limiter (SL): Limits driving speed to a value set by the driver. When the preset limit is reached, the vehicle gently throttles the speed down. The speed limit is not exceeded even if the driver applies more pressure to the accelerator pedal. Europe will require carmakers to install speed limiters from 2022 in all new cars. Safety campaigners described the move as one of the biggest leaps forward in 50 years and said it could save 25,000 lives by 2037.


Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC): Automatically speeds up and slows down your car to keep a set following distance relative to the car ahead. Provides some limited braking. A radar and cameras read cars in front of you in your lane. Then the car increase or decrease your car’s speed to maintain a following distance that you set. Advanced versions can even slow and stop your car in traffic jams, then accelerate for you.


Pedestrian Detection (PD): can detect pedestrians who walk into the road in front of the car, warn the driver — and automatically apply full braking power if the driver does not respond in time. 6,227 pedestrians were killed on U.S. roads in 2018, the highest number in nearly three decades. In Europe, 14% of all traffic fatalities are pedestrians.


Park Assist: Helps guide you into a parallel parking spot after searching and finding a viable option. It automatically steer the car but doesn’t brake or shift gears.


Other: Surround view, Remote Control Parking, Park Distance Control, Back-up Camera…


If you car still doesn’t have those safety features, there are mobile apps available that provide basic safety warnings: download Wavyn Beta to try Forward Collision Warnings (FCW) and High Speed Warnings (HSW) on you Android phone.


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