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Quote:Volvo to Reduce Low Speed Accidents with City Safety System
A Second Set of Eyes for Urban Driving

Canadian Auto Press

You’re driving around in the city or in rush hour traffic, and your phone rings. Or there’s a song on the radio you don’t like. Or, you’ve dropped a CD. In fact, any distraction inserted here will do. For a brief second you take your eyes off the road, and with it your attention. The next thing you know, your 9 AM meeting has been switched from clients to the back end of a minivan.

According to Volvo’s statistics, 75-percent of accidents reported are of this type, taking place in urban situations at speeds of less than 30 km/h (roughly 19 mph). These sorts of collisions don’t usually end up in fatalities, but they can lead to other injuries such as whiplash, not to mention the frustration and aggravation of the damage that’s been caused, as well as associated insurance issues.

Volvo has taken an initiative to reduce the number of these accidents by 50-percent with a new system called "City Safety". It consists of an optical radar device that’s mounted at the upper portion of the windshield that scans the road ahead up to six meters (19.7 ft), 50 times per second at speeds under 30 km/h (19 mph). If City Safety picks up brake lights, or a still vehicle ahead, it will automatically prime the brakes to help the driver slow down, or, if a crash is unavoidable, the brakes will be applied and the throttle will be cut to reduce damage.

Think of it as extending the use of two of Volvo’s newest safety technologies, Collision Warning and Brake Support, but aimed at low speeds.

Like all radar-based devices, the effectiveness of the City Safety system can be limited by weather conditions. Fog, mist, snow, heavy rain and accumulated dirt can "blind" the radar system. If the sensor can’t function, it informs the driver via a warning light on the dashboard. Although the system is capable of providing braking power, it neither provides braking power, nor full braking power unless a crash is imminent, meaning that the driver is still responsible for keeping his or her eyes on the road.


Although Volvo is best known for its work in passive safety protection, it has made a lot of progress in terms of accident prevention. Its top of the line S80 features the aforementioned Collision Warning and Brake Support system, which warns the driver when an accident could potentially happen, applying the brakes if it is imminent. Volvo is also working on its Driver Alert System which monitors the eye movement patterns of a driver, and warns them if they are becoming fatigued. Currently, Volvo is still working on the development of City Safety, although it hopes to have it equipped on its vehicles by 2008.