Car safety technologies are becoming a more and more important problem with the more cars flooding the roads. Auto makers seek to equip vehicles with more so-called active safety features, such as lane departure warnings or forward collision alerts\u2014technology that aims to help drivers avoid a crash, rather than dull the blow of one that has already occurred The three-point seatbelt and the airbags. The three-point seatbelt and the airbags used to be innovative ones, now they are just not enough.<\/p>\n
Auto makers today are using radars, lasers and other sensors in some vehicles to help drivers avoid crashes by detecting what\u2019s around them. But what about potential dangers lurking out of sight, such as a pedestrian stepping out into traffic from behind a parked car? Wouldn\u2019t it be nice if people could use their cellphones to prevent car accidents?<\/p>\n
Honda Motor<\/a>\u00a0Co.\u00a0\u00a0thinks it has a solution for that. The Japanese auto maker is working on technology that alerts pedestrians to oncoming cars and sends a warning to their cellphones if they\u2019re about to be struck. Likewise, the technology also warns drivers of crossing pedestrians and passing motorcycles blocked from view.<\/p>\n \u201cThe sensors we have now are for the immediate surroundings,\u201d said Art St. Cyr, vice president of product planning and logistics for Honda\u2019s American division, during a presentation of some of the company\u2019s advanced safety features.<\/p>\n \u201cThese technologies are looking past that, two or three cars up ahead or what you can\u2019t see around the corner,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Honda\u2019s system uses a phone\u2019s Global Positioning System to send signals to the car about where a pedestrian is located, in what direction they\u2019re traveling and how fast they\u2019re going. It also tells the vehicle whether this person is texting, making a call or listening to music.<\/p>\n The application then calculates the risk of a vehicle-pedestrian collision, and if one is found, alerts the driver with alarms sounding in the car and a flashing display that says \u201cbrake.\u201d The pedestrian\u2019s phone also gets a warning to \u201cwatch out\u201d and makes a honking sound.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Car safety technologies are becoming a more and more important problem with the more cars flooding the roads. Auto makers seek to equip vehicles with more so-called active safety features, such as lane departure warnings or forward collision alerts\u2014technology that … Continue reading