Automatic emergency braking soon to be standard
First there were airbags, then ABS, then Electronic Stability Control.
Initially, all those paradigm-shifting safety features were introduced on high-priced luxury cars. Gradually, their availability filtered down to the vehicles purchased by the masses. Now they’re mandatory standard equipment on every new car sold in Canada and the U.S.
The next big safety feature likely to follow that path is Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB).
Automatic Emergency Braking systems are the next step beyond Forward Collision Warnings, which use in-vehicle sensors such as radar, cameras or lasers to detect an imminent crash and warn the driver.
With AEB, if the driver doesn’t take appropriate and sufficient action in response to such a warning, the system automatically engages the brakes. That brake application may not be sufficient to prevent a collision, depending on the vehicle closing speed, but at the very least, it will mitigate its severity.
Warning systems are available on more than half the models sold in North America, and autobrake on about a quarter, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), although they are standard on very few.
That situation is about to change, however. Recently, 10 major automobile manufacturers entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), its National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the IIHS to make the safety system standard equipment on all their vehicles sold in the U.S. (and, by default, Canada).
The 10 automakers making that historic commitment — Audi, BMW, Ford, General Motors, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo — will work together with the IIHS and NHTSA on the details and timeline for making AEB a standard feature.
It’s a brilliant strategy by all involved. It relieves the regulators from the onerous burden of forced rule making, with all the political and bureaucratic roadblocks that process entails. And it allows the automakers to have serious input into crucial aspects of the technology’s implementation in a co-operative, rather than antagonistic, relationship.
The downside is that it won’t cover all vehicles on the market, at least not immediately. But the 10 participating manufacturers combined account for more than half of all new-vehicle sales in North America, so the competitive pressures on the rest to follow suit will be overwhelming.
And that’s the point. “These 10 manufacturers have committed to an important principle: AEB is a life-saving technology that should be available to every vehicle owner,” said NHTSA administrator Mark Rosekind. “In the months ahead, NHTSA will work closely with IIHS and the auto industry to carry out that commitment, and we encourage every other manufacturer to join this effort.”
Several studies, including a recent report from IIHS, show that AEB technology can reduce insurance injury claims by as much as 35 per cent.
“The evidence is mounting that AEB is making a difference,” said IIHS president Adrian Lund. “Most crashes involve driver error. This technology can compensate for the mistakes every driver makes because the systems are always on alert, monitoring the road ahead and never getting tired or distracted.”