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Issue link: https://adp.epubxp.com/i/111486
AD&P; > March 2013 > FEATURE > Sensors: More, Not Less > Christopher A. Sawyer > ��� Placement of the LED lighting units near where the driver, and passenger, can see them directly or peripherally is important to gain the quickest recognition and reaction time. the driver, however. What���s necessary is a man-machine interface that has several layers of alerts and responds accordingly. Ideally, it would draw the driver���s attention and focus it in the direction of the threat; the more dire the threat, the more intense the warning provided. Continental���s ���Halo��� is not a sensor, it just reacts to what the sensors tell it. A 360�� LED light strip that wraps around the interior of the vehicle within the driver���s and passengers��� line of sight, it can broadcast any color. This supports its second function as recon���gurable ambient lighting. Yet its main function is to move a noti���cation through its discrete elements in the direction the driver needs to focus. ���Depending on the threat level and how the OEM has set the alert hierarchy,��� says Desai, ���you can use this to get the driver to look where he should by, in essence, tapping him on the shoulder. From there you can engage the other warnings [alarms, vibrating seat, etc.] if the threat increases.��� 24 It sounds so simple. However, the system also has to be forgiving enough that it doesn���t send out false warnings or continual alerts in non-threatening situations. ���The last thing you want to do is desensitize the driver to the alert,��� says Bolton. Therefore, the system looks at the driving style and situation, and suppresses the alert under certain conditions. Thus, a luxury SUV equipped with this safety suite and pulling a trailer may not alert the driver that he is hugging the right lane divider, if his eyes are forward and his path consistent. Similarly, backing up through tall grass toward a trailer won���t set of an alarm. This system���s capabilities can be enhanced by using the front-facing radar to look under the car ahead to determine what is happening up the road, and provide an early warning. ���If the traction is limited,��� says Desai, ���you could reduce acceleration while ���ashing a yellow band under the windshield. This would inform the driver that something ahead is causing the car to react this way.��� This adds prediction as well as reaction to a system designed to aid the driver in situations of overwork or inattentiveness, and increases its value to the buyer. Though currently ported to a Cadillac XTS ���tted with GM���s optional Enhanced Safety System, this technology soon will ���nd its way into the mainstream. And with less expensive solutions (using the rearview camera to provide blind spot detection, replacing the front radars with lidar units and a camera, etc.), it���s only a matter of time before this technology becomes commonplace. It will be helped along by regulation, should Euro NCAP follow through on its idea of adding stars for collision avoidance systems while NHTSA proposes removing them for not having one. One thing is for certain, the number of sensors per vehicle will continue to rise, but the warnings they give will be more insightful.