Skip to main content

Ford Mondeo – the car that brakes for pedestrians

The all-new Ford Mondeo will be equipped with a raft of safety features, including technology that is able to detect people in the road ahead and – if the driver does not respond to warning sounds and displays – automatically applies the brakes. Pedestrian Detection is among a raft of new features and improvements detailed by Ford which enhance the Mondeo. The system is part of the Pre-Collision Assist package that also introduces Active Braking, which can autonomously apply braking to help mitigate rear
September 26, 2014 Read time: 3 mins
The all-new 278 Ford Mondeo will be equipped with a raft of safety features, including technology that is able to detect people in the road ahead and – if the driver does not respond to warning sounds and displays – automatically applies the brakes.

Pedestrian Detection is among a raft of new features and improvements detailed by Ford which enhance the Mondeo. The system is part of the Pre-Collision Assist package that also introduces Active Braking, which can autonomously apply braking to help mitigate rear-end collisions, right up to the vehicle’s maximum speed.

Ford’s new Pre-Collision Assist with Pedestrian Detection can detect people in the road ahead, or who could cross the vehicle’s path and automatically applies the brakes if the driver does not respond to warnings. The system processes information collected from a windshield-mounted camera, and radar located in the bumper, and checks it against a database of ‘pedestrian shapes’ to distinguish people from typical roadside scenery and objects.

The Mondeo will also apply automatic braking to mitigate or avoid a collision with a vehicle ahead. Active City Stop operates at speeds of up to 40 km/h (25 mph). At higher speeds new Pre-Collision Assist uses radar and camera technology to scan up to 200 metres ahead, and can autonomously apply up to full braking force to help the driver mitigate or avoid many types of rear-end collision.

Radar technology further enables the new Distance Indication feature and Adaptive Cruise Control technology. Distance Indication provides an intuitive visual interface to inform the driver of the time gap to the vehicle ahead. Adaptive Cruise Control automatically maintains a chosen distance from the vehicle ahead.

In addition, the forward-facing camera supports Lane Keeping Aid, which applies steering torque to guide the all-new Mondeo back in to lane if unintended drifting towards the lane marking is detected; and Traffic Sign Recognition, which provides the driver with the latest detected speed limit, cancellation signs and overtaking regulations via the instrument cluster display.

“The new Mondeo is the most technologically advanced Ford vehicle ever introduced in Europe,” said Ulrich Koesters, vehicle line director, Ford of Europe. “Features like Pre-Collision Assist with Pedestrian Detection add safety and security for drivers in busy urban conditions.”

Mondeo drivers will be able to see more clearly with the introduction of Ford’s adaptive LED headlamp technology to Europe. The sophisticated technology combines full-LED headlamps offering daylight-mimicking light clarity with Ford’s Adaptive Front Lighting System that adjusts the headlight beam angle and intensity to match driving environment. It can choose one of seven settings according to vehicle speed, ambient light conditions, steering angle, distance to the vehicle in front and windscreen wiper activation.

Mondeo also is designed to help drivers in and out of parking spaces. An advanced version of Active Park Assist featuring Perpendicular Parking enables drivers to detect suitably-sized spaces and reverse hands-free into those parallel to the road or side-to-side with other cars.

This advanced parking feature will be supported by both Park-Out Assist, which helps drivers to exit parallel parking spaces; and Side Parking Aid, which delivers an on-screen visual representation and audible warning of obstacles to the sides of the vehicles, as well as to the front and rear.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Machine vision’s transport offerings move on apace
    June 30, 2016
    Colin Sowman considers some of the latest advances in camera technology and transport-related vision technology applications. Vision technology in the transportation sector is moving apace as technical developments on both the hardware and software sides combine to make cameras more multifunctional with a single digital camera now able to cover a multitude of tasks.
  • VTT's autonomous cars take to public roads
    May 18, 2017
    The autonomous cars developed by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland are able to exchange information with each other and their driving environment. They are able to follow a pre-programmed route and avoid collisions with sudden obstacles without input from the driver. The cars currently require the lane markings or sides of the road to be visible. However, by 2020, VTT says the cars will be driving in more demanding conditions on roads covered in gravel and snow. The autonomous cars feature a thermal
  • Groups seek electronic collision alert devices on big trucks
    February 20, 2015
    The US Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Truck Safety Coalition, the Center for Auto Safety and Road Safe America have filed a petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) requesting that the agency initiate rulemaking to require forward collision avoidance and mitigation braking (F-CAM) systems on all new large trucks and buses with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 10,000 pounds or more. F-CAM technology uses radar and sensors to first alert the driver and then t
  • Qualcomm and QNX partner on in-car systems
    March 19, 2015
    Qualcomm Technologies’ latest connected dashboard combines QNX CAR software and its Snapdragon Automotive Solutions (SAS) platform. The highly integrated, thermal-efficient automotive-grade SAS platform combines the CPU, GPU, 4G LTE modem, GPS/GNSS, Bluetooth and wi-fi. It manages all infotainment features and also processes vehicle safety information from camera, ultrasonic and LIDAR sensors, and delivers relevant information to the driver in real time. Its driver assistance system uses LIDAR and ultrason