By Stephen Longden, SBD ITS and Telematics Specialist
Congratulations are due to Daimler for winning Yellow Angel awards for its active safety technology. The Gelbe Engel awards from the ADAC, Germany’s leading motoring club, are for the Active Blind Spot Assist and Lane Keeping Assistance systems offered in the Mercedes-Benz CLS-, E- and S-Class models.
The Mercedes Active Blind Spot Assist system operates at speeds of between 18-115 mph and warns drivers when a vehicle is in a blind spot area. A red warning triangle appears on the exterior mirror followed by an audible warning if the driver indicates to change lane. It also provides light braking to the relevant wheel to keep the vehicle in lane.
The Active Lane Keeping Assist system alerts the driver when veering out of a lane through a warning provided by three vibrations of the steering wheel and light braking to keep the vehicle in lane. Both the Active Blind Spot Assist and Lane Keeping Assist are part of a Lane Tracking Package offered by Mercedes.
The ADAC’s Yellow Angel awards are aimed at encouraging technical innovation, road safety and environmental protection. The ADAC views Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) as important tools to reduce the number and severity of traffic collisions. In addition to including ADAS in its annual Yellow Angel awards, the ADAC is encouraging mass market uptake by participating in the Bester Beifahrer, Best Co-driver, initiative led by the DVR, German road safety council.
The DVR Bester Beifahrer campaign is organising events and providing publicity and training material to promote ADAS to German consumers. In addition to the German government and the ADAC, the initiative is supported by system suppliers Bosch, Continental, Hella and Valeo.
In the latest ADAS research release by SBD, Kickstarting the mass market for ADAS ~ a review of the key market drivers, the DVR’s activities is just one of the many market trends analysed that are converging to support widespread uptake of active safety systems. For more information on how to access this new research, contact Juanita Appleby on jappleby@sbd.co.uk