Adas on cars and heavy vehicles in the city: they increase safety, which are mandatory

Joseph Biondo

@
fat.old_sun

April 22, 2023

How the latest generation vehicles are positioned and what they are doing, and consequently the manufacturers, to ensure the safety of vulnerable road users, therefore pedestrians, cyclists or young people on scooters? The answer is: much. Giant strides have been made in recent years thanks also to the push of the legislator. There technology which fills the recent models and greatly influences the verdict of the scales has made travel safer and consequently also the roads. It is defined by an acronym: Adas.

What are Adas

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Adas is the acronym of a series of English terms that we can translate with advanced driver assistance systems. This macroset includes devices capable of making a contribution to safety preventing an accident or significantly reducing its consequences, both of those who occupy the passenger compartment and of those who are outside. Some Adas are already mandatory on newly registered vehicles, others will be in the future.

Automatic emergency braking

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Among the Adas indispensable by law on recent vehicles is automatic emergency braking. The device combines information from the vehicle’s cameras, sensors and radars to monitor the presence of obstacles while driving. If it detects something, the system alerts the driver until the brakes are applied slowing down or stopping the vehicle to avoid accidents, or at least reduce their consequences.

The most advanced systems are able to individuatein addition to other vehicles, even those most at risk such as cyclists or pedestrians. The Aeb or automatic emergency braking is mandatory on all newly type-approved cars from 2020, while from 2022 the obligation has been extended to all newly registered cars, in other words to all new cars sold from 2022 onwards.

Blind spot monitoring

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Blind spot monitoring systems are made up of a series of cameras and sensors scattered throughout the vehicle. Their electronic “eye” almost manages to cancel the geometric limits of the shapes and dimensions of the passenger compartment, and of the driving position. In other words, this type of Adas monitors the areas that the driver’s eye cannot see even with the rear view mirrors.

An obstacle has been identified alongside the vehicle or inside the blind spot blind spots), be it a car, a motorcycle, a pedestrian or a cyclist, the system warns the driver through a light on the rear view mirror or even via alarms or vibrations on the steering wheel. The investigators have yet to ascertain the details of the accident, but the presence of Blis on the cement mixer that overwhelmed and killed the Milanese cyclist on 2 April might have helped to avoid the drama. It is a driver assistance tool without a doubt fundamental on all types of vehicles, especially bulky ones with very large blind spots.

Automatic braking in reverse

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The automatic braking system in reverse represents the natural evolution of the classic sensors and the parking camera. With a radar at the rear, the system can monitor rearing side traffic: if it detects approaching pedestrians and cyclists warns the driver, and if he perceives the risk of an imminent impact, he can apply the brakes to stop exiting the parking lot and avoid the worst.

Night vision

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Night vision systems are not an absolute novelty, but until a few years ago they were very expensive and therefore they were found almost exclusively on high-end vehicles. In recent times, however, costs have decreased and fortunately, the so-called night vision ended up increasing active safety by a growing number of mid-range car.

It works thanks to a series of infrared cameras, sensors and radars on the front of the vehicle, which can identify people, vehicles including two-wheelers and animals when it gets dark or in bad weather. The images are projected on the on-board instrumentation and in case of need the system warns the driver so that I can react in time.

Obligations for heavy vehicles

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The European regulation which entered into force in July 2022, establishes a series of obligations for the protection of vulnerable road users. The new ones buses and trucksas well as having to meet general requirements and have existing systems such as lane departure warning and advanced emergency braking systems, they must be:

• able to detect the presence of pedestrians and cyclists in front of the vehicle, warn drivers and avoid collisions;
• designed to reduce blind spots in front of and to the side of the driver.

The European standard is very important, however its effectiveness depends on the age of the vehicle fleet. The measure insists on newly approved vehicles, not on those already registered. According to data from 2022, the latest available, in Italy not even 20% of the truck fleet is younger than 5 years old30% are between 5 and 15 years old e more than 50% are over 15 years old.