Week 6

This week we will discuss Forward Collision Warning and other associated systems, like adaptive cruise control and automatic braking, some of the newest technological safety systems. When these systems determine a rear-end collision with the car ahead is imminent, it alerts the driver to make him/her brake. If the driver does not brake, some of the better systems have an autobrake feature that slows down the car without the input of the driver. These systems only work if there is a low speed differential between the driver's car and the one ahead of him/her. Many of the systems can prevent a crash if the speed differential is around 12 mph, but only the best can prevent crashes from occurring at 25 mph. The different systems from various manufactures perform differently. Even when the system does not avoid the collision, it significantly reduces the speed at which the collision happens, reducing the amount of damage to both cars and the likelihood of injury to the occupants. Some systems, when detecting a crash is imminent, prepare for a safer collision in other ways as well. The car tightens the seatbelt and closes the windows before the collision occurs to provide the most protection to the occupants.

These forward collision warning and front crash prevention systems work by either using radar, a laser, or a camera to monitor the car ahead. Unlike the laser and camera systems, the radar systems can operate fully in bad weather conditions.

Adaptive cruise control is like normal cruise control, except it can change the speed of the car. It monitors the car ahead of you on the highway and maintains a safe following distance, slowing down or speeding up the car if necessary.

Considering that the majority of crashes are in an urban environment at low speeds and most crashes are rear-end collisions, these types of systems can greatly reduce the number of crashes and injuries to drivers and pedestrians.