Most safety features in vehicles recent years were designed to help protect from injury when a car accident happens.  However, thanks to technological advances, some vehicles are being outfitted with features that help avoid a car accident in the first place.  This new generation of safety features is frequently referred to as Intelligent Vehicle Safety Systems (IVSS).

The new Volvo XC60 will feature City Safety, Volvo’s newest technology designed to avoid lower-speed collisions.

City Safety will work up to 30 km/h.  City Safety has laser sensors that monitors the road ahead and assesses the speed of other vehicles up to 13 feet ahead.  When it’s time to slow down or stop, City Safety automatically applies the brakes.

Volvo reports that 75% of all accidents take place up to speeds of 30 km/h and that half of drivers in these accidents did not brake at all before impact.  City Safety will benefit by either totally avoiding a car accident or reducing the impact speed.

Mercedes developed Distronic and then Distronic Plus which is a series of radar sensors all over the car that measure the how far cars or other objects are in front and on the sides.  When the car gets too close to an object, Distronic triggers either the brakes or accelerates in order to maintain or minimize a set distance.  If a collision is about to happen, the driver is alerted by a visible and audible signal.

Toyota developed its Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) depends on other vehicles, pedestrians, stop signs, traffic lights, and other infrastructure be outfitted with transmission devices.  These transmission devices communicate with moving vehicles.  When a moving vehicle gets too close to a transmitter, the vehicle alerts (audio and visual) the driver and automatically slows down or stops.  Obviously ITS requires other car makers and government to use the universal transmitters.

Ford is approaching car accident avoidance similarly to Toyota with its Vehicle Collision Avoidance Systems.  Ford’s system relies on transmitters built into road infrastructure (traffic lights and signs etc.) and other vehicles.  When vehicles get too close or are likely to go through a traffic sign/light, the sensors alert the driver and slow or stop the vehicle.  Again, this system requires universal application with other vehicles and road infrastructure.

Until recent years vehicle safety was about preventing and minimizing injury when an accident occurred.  No doubt injury prevention developments have saved many lives and minimized many injuries; however, in recent years vehicle safety with the use of on-board computers is launching to the next level by working toward avoiding accidents altogether.

Disclaimer:  I have not driven nor own any of the above-mentioned vehicles.  The information was obtained from the car manufacturers themselves.  I was not paid nor endorsed in any way to write this article.  This article is intended to be informational only.