Reinforcing vehicle stability in emergency situations

"Active" safety depends first and foremost on driving correctly, in particular in avoidance situations or braking on curves, situations in which a driving error can easily cause an accident. The capacity of vehicles to remain stable in emergency situations is also essential. Handling on the road, adherence, shock absorbing and braking, but also illumination and visibility are factors in the result.

The maintenance and regular verifications of these systems are of course indispensable. This would seem to be a given in countries with a long history of motor vehicles, but a large part of the automotive rolling stock in poor countries does not comply with these basic requirements. In order to further improve safety, the past few decades have seen the introduction of a number of driving assistance devices.

ABS and ESP are becoming standard equipment

In 1975, Bosch introduced ABS ("antiblokiersystem" or anti-lock braking system) that prevents the wheels from locking during a panic stop: steering remains actively under driver control and the vehicle can be safely brought to a stop. Originally equipping only high-end autos and trucks, ABS is now undergoing generalization on most cars and is increasingly present on two-wheel vehicles.
In 1995, Bosch proposed ESP (Electronic Stability Program) that combined ABS with control of trajectory. Its goal was to maintain vehicle stability in all circumstances. Automatic stabilization systems that act on the brakes of all the wheels and the accelerator (even steering on some versions), require that these components are no longer controlled mechanically by the driver but are managed by on-board systems controlling electric motors (like "fly-by-wire" airplanes). This is the only way for the "machine" to take control.

ESP now equips most high-end models and will become more generalized in the coming years as a result of regulations that are, or will soon be, in force in industrialized countries. Its penetration has started under the generalized acronym of ESC for Electronic Stability Control.

Acting to avoid the occurrence of emergency situations

Even more sophisticated are driver assistance devices that act before the potential accident since they are intended to avoid the actual occurrence of emergency situations. Automakers and parts suppliers propose a panoply of ITS (in the broad sense): speed limiters, keeping the car in its lane with an alert in case of drift, vision assistance (night, fog, detection of vehicles in blind spots, active illumination system to protect pedestrians), surveillance and maintenance of alertness and automatic emergency braking.

All these features are based on the exchange of information between vehicles (detection of distances), between the infrastructure and the vehicle (drifting from lanes, speed warnings, obstacle alerts) or between the vehicle and driver (maintaining alertness). If need be, the on-board computer assistance system can even momentarily take over control of the vehicle. The next step will be to integrate these devices in complete active/passive safety systems for the vehicle.

Prototypes developed by Bosch (CAPS for Combined Active Passive Safety), Volvo (Collision Warning System) or Honda (ASV-3 for Advanced Safety Vehicle) have been presented, for example in Paris at the 2006 Challenge Bibendum. It is obvious that any communication system between vehicles or with the road infrastructure supposes the existence of a common language, explaining the need to establish communication standards as rapidly as possible. In addition, serious thought must be given to user (driver) acceptance of these systems… and avoid that drivers "reassured" by the systems do not take added risks.

Read also in this section:

- 2011-2020: A decade of action and hope for road safety
- Benefits of the Proactive Partnership Strategy to São José dos Campos, Brazil
- GRSP - Road crashes: An everyday humanitarian disaster
- Road safety: a major national issue in Ghana
- Sweden's Vision Zero: no victims or serious injuries in road traffic
- Road Safety: The World Health Organization defines five priorities

Categories: Challenge Bibendum - Sustainable mobility - Urban mobility - Road safety - Vehicles

Keywords: ABS - Accidents - Brakes - safety