“Automatic Pilot” has long been a standard feature on major airlines, but now a similar technology could soon become standard on most automobiles.
Volvo is currently developing technology that could make car accidents a thing of the past. Within the very near future, Volvo will equip its vehicles with pedestrian detection in darkness (no more near misses with a darkened bike or pedestrian), animal detection (no more worries of deer crossings or possums on a rural road), road edge and barrier detection (no more fear of going off the road’s edge in a steep curve), vehicle-to-vehicle communication (no more car crashes), adaptive cruise control with steer assist and even self parking.
Volvo’s road edge detection technology, which is a first in the industry, will actually be available later this year in the 2014 XC90 model. This system will automatically detect if your car is about to go off the road or hit a curb, then self-steer itself back onto the roadway. The system will work even when road markings are nonexistent or too faded for detection.
Vehicle-to-vehicle communication (V2V) is a collective initiative being developed by various automakers in conjunction with the government. This technology will allow cars to “talk” to each other and warn of impending hazards, even when the driver lacks line-of-sight view of a potential threat.
Pedestrian and animal detection are part of Volvo’s City Safety System and will come standard in the S60, XC60, XC70, and S80 models. This system will automatically slam on the brakes if it calculates that a collision is imminent, and will completely prevent a collision if your car is traveling under 19mph.
As for self-parking, Volvo is developing technology that will not only parallel park (as some current vehicles already do), but will allow the car to drop off passengers at their door, then autonomously find an available parking space. Now how’s that for technology?
Check out the video below to learn more:
