Every year, around 40,000 people die on the roads. That makes it one of the leading causes of death for people under the age of 40.
For this reason, many parents worry about driving. They fear not only for themselves, but also the risks that it poses for their children. All it takes is one distracted road user for accidents to happen.
The good news is that carmarkers are getting much better at making their vehicles safe. In just the last ten years, we’ve seen a raft of innovations designed to protect both passengers, pedestrians and other road users.
In this post, we take a look at some of the safety upgrades you might want to consider. Check them out below:
Heads-Up Displays
Throughout history, car manufacturers placed speed and RPM dials behind the steering wheel. The idea was to make them as easy as possible for drivers to quickly check.
Unfortunately, these displays still require motorists to divert their attention from the road ahead. Dials don’t appear in their field of view.
Heads-up display technology – originally used on fighter jets – is changing all this. Now it is possible to see how fast you are going and keep both eyes firmly fixed on the road.
The way it works is actually surprisingly simple. These displays project images onto your vehicle’s windshield using special lighting and reflective glass elements. What you see is essentially a floating image – no screen required.
Some vehicles are also coming with voice command HUD. This means that you can bring up the HUD or switch it off whenever you need it, without having to play around with any buttons as you drive.
Parking Assist
Parking assist seems like an almost magical technology. You just point your vehicle at a space you’d like to park in, and it’ll reverse or parallel park for you.
The great thing about this technology is that it relieves you from the various pressures of parallel parking. You’re much less likely to hit the curb or knock the bumper of the car in front of you. Software knows precisely how to operate the steering wheel and where the vehicle will end up.
360-Degree Surround Camera
Cabin pillars help to keep your vehicle rigid on the road but, unfortunately, they can hamper visibility. That’s why many modern vehicles now come with 360-degree cameras. These offer drivers totally uninterrupted views of their surroundings, without having to twist around in their seats to look out the back.
Cabin cameras are also helpful inside the vehicle too. They allow you to keep an eye on any children or animals you might be transporting.
This type of camera is particularly popular in minivans and large SUVs. It’s helpful for when parents want to check what is happening in the back seats.
Adaptive Headlights
Manually shifting headlights between dipped and full beam is a chore, but a necessary one. If you keep them on full beam, you risk dazzling oncoming drivers. However, if you dip them, you can’t see much of the road in front of you.
The solution to this issue are adaptive headlights. If you put them in full beam mode, they will automatically toggle between full beam and dipped, depending on the surrounding environment.
What’s amazing about these systems is how well they work. Adaptive headlights, for instance, don’t dip when they detect street lights – only other drivers. Dipping occurs for oncoming vehicles on the other side of the road as well as those you approach on your side from behind.
Pedestrian Detection
Many vehicles made in the last five years have collision warning systems. These flash a red warning on your display and sometimes make a sound if they believe that you’re about to collide with another vehicle.
Pedestrian detection is the next iteration of this idea. Instead of telling you when you are about to hit other vehicles, it tells you that you’re going to hit a person.
The way these systems work is complicated. They combine radar and camera sensing with advanced AI software that can detect humans in the environment. If sensors and cameras believe that a pedestrian is about to walk out into the road, they will send a warning to the driver.
Blind Spot Cameras
In the past, most vehicles had blindspots. These occurred when the side mirrors couldn’t provide a reflection of the entire flank of the vehicle.
It was actually a surprisingly challenging problem to solve. For most vehicles, simply changing the shape or design of the mirror didn’t work.
Now, thanks to falling camera prices, blind spot detection is possible, but through a means nobody imagined. Sensors on the side of vehicles are now checking that it’s safe to change lanes, negating the need for you to manually turn and check yourself. If it’s not safe to change lanes, you’ll get a warning message.
Automatic Braking
We’ve briefly mentioned automatic braking above, but it is worth pointing out again, particularly for those who want to keep their families safe. It works using a combination of camera technology and radar. If the car detects that an oncoming vehicle is approaching too fast, it’ll slam on the brakes for you, so that you don’t have it.
As you learn more about this safety feature, you soon realize just how good it is for families. Even if you find yourself distracted, vehicles with this technology continue looking after you.
Lane Keeping Assist
Many drivers find it hard to stay within their lane, especially on long trips. It’s a hassle to have to continually steer your vehicle.
Unfortunately, if you move out of your lane, it could be dangerous for both you and other road users. Automakers are therefore equipping their vehicles with technology that can detect lanes on the road and whether you are within them. It can also automatically steer in the lanes for you on some models of car, while others just issue a warning.
Wrapping Up
As you can see, new car technology is boosting family safety. What’s more, it’s improving all the time, reducing the risk of an accident.
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