Car of the Future Doesn’t Crash
New safety features are currently in development that could lead to a crash-proof automobile in the not-so-distant future. At the same time as advancements in computerized navigation systems are causing concern over their distractive potential, safe-car technologies have the ability to correct certain distracted driving mistakes. What's more, intelligent safety systems can benefit even the most attentive driver. An article at CNN Money provides further details on the forward-moving trend toward crash-less cars.
Audi is one of the automobile manufacturers behind the dual trends of enhanced navigation and automated safety measures. While the new Audi A6 has a multi-feature navigation guide (the car serves as its own WiFi hotspot) it was also designed to be more difficult to crash and safer in the event of an accident. The car uses radar technology and multiple cameras to detect crashes from the front, side and rear. A dashboard flash signals the driver in advance of potential collisions. This "tap on the shoulder," as one Audi spokesman calls it, occurs milliseconds before a collision. The notification process also causes the the seat belts to tense and the windows and sunroof to automatically close, but airbags are not deployed unless there is an actual impact.
Audi spokesperson Mark Dahncke explained that "these two trends — advanced driver information and active safety — are developing in tandem." Anticipating questions about whether Internet-level features should be placed in the automobile in the first place, Dahncke says that if you have your mobile phone in the car you have this functionality already. In Audi's view, integrating these features into the car actually makes them "as safe and useful as possible."
While drivers must still maintain awareness and employ common sense when operating vehicles, soon the car may actually drive itself, mitigating the potential for human error, while making room for machine error. The technology is already available, thanks to a Google-led team. Last year the Internet company debuted a driverless car that traversed 1,000 miles of California roads without major incident.
