Skip to main content

Ford rolls out new driver assist system

Ford Motor Company is rolling out a new driver-assist system that can reduce the severity of or even eliminate some frontal collisions involving vehicles and pedestrians. Pre-collision assist with pedestrian detection will debut as available technology on the 2015 Ford Mondeo on sale in Europe this year. It will then roll out to other Ford and Lincoln products around the world.
October 24, 2014 Read time: 2 mins

278 Ford Motor Company is rolling out a new driver-assist system that can reduce the severity of or even eliminate some frontal collisions involving vehicles and pedestrians. Pre-collision assist with pedestrian detection will debut as available technology on the 2015 Ford Mondeo on sale in Europe this year. It will then roll out to other Ford and Lincoln products around the world.

The system uses radar and camera technology to scan the roadway ahead and, if a collision risk with a vehicle or pedestrian is detected, provides a warning to the driver. If the driver does not respond in time, the system can automatically apply up to full braking force to help reduce the severity of or even eliminate some frontal collisions.

According to Ford, pre-collision assist may help drivers avoid rear end collisions with other vehicles at all speeds, while pedestrian detection can help the driver avoid pedestrians at lower speeds and both may reduce the severity of forward collisions or even prevent certain forward collisions.

“This technology adds to the already impressive list of driver-assist technologies Ford customers benefit from today,” said Raj Nair, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development.

Ford warns that, while the new system may be especially helpful in unexpected situations, it does not replace the driver and has limitations including night, low and harsh lighting conditions, vehicles moving in a different direction and certain weather conditions.

Ford engineers tested the system on closed test tracks using rigs fitted with manikins to replicate pedestrians. They then spent months refining the technology on roads around the world to test system reliability.

“This real-world testing was an important part of the development, because pedestrians in an urban setting can present a wide range of potential situations,” said Scott Lindstrom, Ford manager, Driver Assist Technologies. “We covered more than 300,000 miles on three continents that included a wide range of settings and situations.”

Related Content

  • ITS homes in on cycling safety
    April 9, 2014
    A new generation of ITS equipment is helping road authorities get to grips with cycle safety – and not a moment too soon as Colin Sowman discovers. Cyclists - remember them? Apparently not. At least not according to the OECD 2013 report Cycling, Health and Safety which contains the statement: ‘Cyclists are often forgotten in the design of the road traffic system’. Looking through the statistics that exist (each country appears to compile them differently) it is not difficult to see how such a conclusion cou
  • In vehicle systems allow drivers to provide travel information
    July 27, 2012
    The use of a Vehicle Data Translator will allow every vehicle on a given segment of road to contribute to a highly accurate, readily accessible source of localised weather information, thus improving safety in all conditions. Sheldon Drobot and William P. Mahoney III, US National Center for Atmospheric Research, Paul A. Pisano, USDOT/Federal Highway Administration, and Benjamin B. McKeever, USDOT/Research and Innovative Technology Administration, write. On the morning of June 10 2009, under the cover of den
  • NTSB calls for immediate action on collision avoidance systems for vehicles
    June 12, 2015
    A report by the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) outlines the life-saving benefits of currently available collision avoidance systems and recommends that the technology become standard on all new passenger and commercial vehicles. The report, The Use of Forward Collision Avoidance Systems to Prevent and Mitigate Rear-End Crashes, stresses that collision avoidance systems can prevent or lessen the severity of rear-end crashes, thus saving lives and reducing injuries. According to statistics fro
  • Daimler Buses introduces pedestrian recognition for buses
    July 4, 2017
    Daimler Buses is launching the new Active Brake Assist 4 (ABA 4) with pedestrian recognition which it says is the world's first emergency braking assistance system in a bus to automatically brake for pedestrians.