Volvo unveils cyclist detection system
Volvo has always been at the forefront of safety innovation, and now its wide-reaching safety net includes cyclists alongside pedestrians and roadside animals.
Volvo's corporate logo on the rear hatch of a Volvo C30 in a showroom near the Volvo Car Corporation Headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo will introduce a Sensus Connect infotainment system in 2014.
Bob Strong/Reuters/File
No automaker in the world has done as good a job of both as Volvo. The brand originally known for building safe and reliable has branched out to target and pedestrians in its safety net, and now that list includes bicyclists, too.
聽An offshoot of Volvo鈥檚 Pedestrian Detection system, first launched in 2010, the new Pedestrian and Cyclist Detection system includes full brake capabilities. Advancements in software, including faster vision processing, now allow the system to cover what Volvo is describing as 鈥渃ertain鈥� cyclist situations.
Since Volvo鈥檚 detection system is forward-looking, it can react to cyclists moving in the same direction as the , assuming the differential in speed is not substantial. When it senses that a collision is imminent, the system delivers a warning to the driver and automatically brakes to avoid or minimize an accident.
听滨苍 Europe, roughly 50-percent of cyclist fatalities are caused by impacts with motor vehicles. Volvo鈥檚 system, which relies on data from both a radar unit and a camera, allows for accurate object recognition at the farthest possible distances, potentially enabling a significant reduction in collisions between and bicyclists.
聽Ultimately, Volvo鈥檚 goal is , which is a mission shared by virtually every automaker working on autonomous technology. Though it may be farther off than Volvo鈥檚 target date of 2020, every advancement in safety gets the automaker one step closer to its target.
聽Look for Volvo to roll out the Pedestrian and Cyclist Detection system on its V40, S60, V60, XC60, V70, XC70 and S80 models, beginning in the second quarter of 2013.