Bosch saving lives on Kiwi roads
Kiwis are being encouraged to consider the latest vehicle safety innovations when making their next new car purchasing decision.
Bosch-developed Auto Emergency Braking (AEB) works by using sensors to detect potential collisions, which may result in a warning to the driver, or even automatic braking if needed.
Bosch Australia’s head of vehicle safety systems, Mark Jackman said: “Bosch Automatic Emergency Braking physically brakes the car even if the driver does not put their foot on the pedal.”
The technology has the potential to end about 25 percent of rear-end crashes.
“A brief distraction or loss of concentration can often be sufficient to cause a rear-end collision,” he adds.
“A driver traveling at 80km/h who is distracted for just one second covers a distance of more than 22 metres in this time. In critical situations, seconds are decisive in determining whether the driver can avoid a rear-end collision.
“Accident research shows that prior to rear-end crashes most drivers do not press the brake pedal strongly enough, or do not press the brakes at all. The Auto Emergency Braking system becomes active as soon as the vehicle is started, and supports the driver at all speeds – by day and by night. Nevertheless, the driver still has a responsibility to pay attention and drive carefully at all times.
“If every Australian ensured these technologies were in their next vehicle purchase, road trauma could be reduced by a third.”
Auto Emergency Braking (AEB) is a vehicle safety technology that helps improve safety by warning the driver of identifying unsafe situations and hazards, and automatically braking the vehicle when a collision is imminent, preparing the vehicle for impact.
AEB, therefore, has the potential to prevent a crash from occurring or mitigate the severity of an accident by reducing the impact speed of a crash.
It works by using a combination of sensors, radar, laser or cameras to detect potential collisions with other vehicles, pedestrians or hazards. The technology will then send a warning to the driver. If the driver does not respond, the system intervenes and brakes automatically.
The system pre-charges brakes to provide the most efficient braking and the system disengages when the driver takes over. If a crash is imminent, some systems also prepare the vehicle for collision, such as the pre-tensioning of seatbelts.
A number of studies have found vehicles equipped with AEB are less likely to experience a crash.
cut rear-end crashes by 25 percent. estimate AEB has the potential to reduce fatal crashes by 20-25 percent and injury crashes by 25 percent (Anderson, Doecke, Mackenzie & Ponte, 2013). From preliminary read-world data available (Schittenhelm, 2013) it appears that:
could be mitigated in crash severity.
rear-end crashes.
There are three different types of AEB systems:
City – this version targets city driving where crashes often occur at low speeds but can cause debilitating injuries such as whiplash. Systems that can mitigate crashes at up to 20km/h fall under this category. Typically, these systems detect other vehicles and are not as sensitive to pedestrians or roadside objects.
Inner urban – this version typically uses long range radar to scan further ahead of the vehicle (up to 200m) at higher speeds above 50km/h.
Pedestrian – this version uses forward facing cameras and can include radar to detect vulnerable road users through their shape and characteristics. The way in which pedestrians move relative to the path of the vehicle is calculated to determine whether they are in danger of being struck.
The three types are not mutually exclusive, and there are systems that incorporate two or more functionalities.
There are different versions of AEB: City systems which work in low speed environments, Inter Urban systems, which work in higher speed environments, and Pedestrian systems which specifically detect pedestrians.
Cars with Inter Urban Systems will work in higher speed zones, but the maximum speed varies by manufacturer. At higher speeds, if AEB cannot avoid the crash, it will reduce the speed of the car so that the impact is not as severe.
The driver does not need to have his foot off the accelerator – the technology detects hazards, and if the driver doesn't brake, the system will activate. If the driver reacts (brakes) sufficiently the technology won't activate, however other related technologies such as Emergency Brake Assist, ABS, traction and stability control (which most vehicles have) will help the driver to respond most effectively by applying extra brake pressure, preventing the wheels from locking up or monitoring and assisting with traction and stability.
Currently, according to Euro NCAP, AEB is available in some Audi, Ford, Honda, Jaguar, Jeep, Lexus, Mercedes, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Opel, Skoda, Range Rover, Rolls-Royce, Subaru, Toyota, Volvo and Volkswagen vehicles. You should check with your dealer to see if it is fitted to a particular model – Ed.
We could compare it to Electronic Stability Control (ESC), which went from having a 10 percent fitment rate in 2005 to 95 percent in 2013. However, this included the mandate of ESC from 2011. Ideally, we would like to see a quicker uptake of AEB.
The biggest potential for reducing the number of serious and fatal crashes in coming years is likely to come from forward collision detection and avoidance technologies. These include, but are not limited to, emergency brake assist, AEB, “citysafe” low speed obstacle detection with automatic braking and adaptive cruise control with autonomous braking.
* Editor’s note: The latest updated rating system from the world’s top crash testing body, Euro NCAP, points to the implementation of AEB technologies within its overall rating scheme.
Three types of AEB technologies are included in the rating scheme, starting with low speed car-to-car AEB City and higher speed car-to-car AEB Inter-Urban, followed in 2016 by AEB Pedestrian.
From this year, only vehicles fitted with AEB functionality are able to score the maximum five-star EuroNCAP rating.