Euro NCAP Demands Automatic Front Braking for Five-Stars
Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) is slowly working its way into more and more cars at a lower price point, and now the Euro NCAP safety ratings bureau has announced that starting in 2014, cars will have to include AEB as standard equipment if they hope to gain a five-star safety rating.
The systems generally work by using a combination of forward-looking radar, lidar and video systems to detect what lies on the road ahead of the vehicle. If an emergency braking situation is imminent, the car will see, and react to it by applying the necessary brake application. Ensuring that even if the driver is distracted the vehicle will stop can help reduce accidents by 27 percent according to Euro NCAP.
If automakers were not considering standardizing this tech before, they certainly are now, as safety ratings are a serious concern to many new car buyers. And while at the moment this rating system strictly applies in Europe, it seems that if it is made standard there, it won’t be long before it filters into our market.
“Euro NCAP has decided to include AEB assessments as part of the overall star rating from 2014 onwards and hopes that European authorities will soon require AEB as mandatory on all new vehicle types,” said Michiel van Ratingen, secretary general of Euro NCAP.
Stephen covers all of the day-to-day events of the industry as the News Editor at AutoGuide, along with being the AG truck expert. His truck knowledge comes from working long days on the woodlot with pickups and driving straight trucks professionally. When not at his desk, Steve can be found playing his bass or riding his snowmobile or Sea-Doo. Find Stephen on <A title="@Selmer07 on Twitter" href="http://www.twitter.com/selmer07">Twitter</A> and <A title="Stephen on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/117833131531784822251?rel=author">Google+</A>
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At what speed please? Volvo can do autonomous braking at speed of around 20 mile/hour.