For most urban drivers, one of the key problems is the ever-increasing number of cyclists on the roads. The sudden appearance of a cyclist in front of a car has often resulted in collisions. Now, Volvo is showing off a new in-car system which would detect the position of a bicycle with respect to the car and automatically apply brakes if the need be.
The system was shown off at the Geneva Motor Show this year. In order to detect the presence and position of bicycles around the car, Volvo uses a radar mounted atop the grille of the vehicle. To complement the radar a camera is mounted into the rearview mirror. While the radar serves to identify the position of a bicycle nearby, the camera confirms that the detected object is indeed a bicycle.
For practical purposes, this is a great offering. In the past, a number of incidents have happened where drivers were unable to brake in time to avoid a collision with a bicyclist, often resulting in significant damages. This new system from Volvo is able to automatically apply brakes once the radar and the camera affirms the chance of an impending collision.
However, many have cited concerns regarding the safety of using such a system. Especially, if a driver is unaware of an incoming bicycle and isn’t ready for a collision, a sudden automatic brake wouldn’t be a very pleasant experience. Although the company has showed off the system at the Motor Show, we do hope that Volvo would further improve upon the system before making it commercially available in one of its cars.
Source: Volvo Cars
Courtesy: The Verge