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Radar For Safer Driving
KarmaOverDogma writes "The New York Times reports that in the next few years, auto manufacturers may look to use low powered phased-array radar in the back of cars, in combination with enhanced mirror displays, to help reduce accidents related to so-called 'blind-spots.' The system currently under devlopment is a result of a partnership between Valeo, an auto parts supplier, and Raytheon, a military contractor. They note that according to data from the NHTSA, In the last 10 years such (blind-spot) accidents led to 1.5 million injuries and caused more than $360 billion in damage in the United States alone. With an expected cost of around $500.00 (depending on the configuration), will this low-power radar system from the 1970's really help make driving safer?"
Or you could just check your mirrors and then look over your shoulder before changing lanes like they teach you to do in freakin driver's ed!
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www.n1ywb.com
I watch to much Star Trek. When I first read the blurb I thought it said "low power phaser array" and I thought "Man I gotta get me one of those."
It would really come in handy during rush hour though.
Chaos reigns within.
Reflect, repent, and reboot.
Order shall return.
Only if it jams cell phones in the process...
I was driving a while back, I have a little area above the mirror to set stuff in, I put my sunglasses up there and noticed that with the convex shape of the glasses, I was able to see all around the back of the car, now granted that distances were obscured b/c of the odd shape, but what about a convex rear-view mirror, which would allow for greater visibility? Simple solution, no fancy electronics.
Yes, it will make it safer. Having a full power circular radar that locks and tracks all moving objects within 200 yd would make it safer still.
We have multiple technologies such as this that will make driving a car much safer... the most important thing is making them cheap enough to be affordable and practical on vehicles.
Davak
This reminds me of a previous story where they said something along the lines of, "Now drivers no longer have to worry about blind spots, and can concentrate on driving"... It was in regards to some detection system built into the light poles along side highways.
At what point does the driver get away with, well the beeper didn't sound, so I assumed there was no one beside me... I'm upset at how little people bother to actually pay attention when driving, and relying on some device to warn you if your manuever could potentially kill someone or be safe is just insane!
Maybe I'm old fashioned, and maybe it's the fact I ride a bike in traffic, but I'm sick and tired of people not paying attention while driving, and this is not going to help, it'll make them even lazier...
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Programming is like sex... Make one mistake and support it the rest of your life.
if one of the things they taught in driving school was how to adjust your side mirrors properly.
Most people have their side mirrors adjusted so as to point back down the side of the vehicle, which is not very useful. If you adjust them to point into the next lane over, you can completely eliminate the blind spot. A good way to set this up is to put your head against the side window and adjust the left mirror so that the side of the car is just barely visible, then align your head with the centerline of the car and do the same with the right mirror. With a little tweaking, you should be able to track passing cars on either side from the inside mirror to the side mirror to the side window without ever losing sight of them.
What would make driving safer would be to require better qualifications and a different license class for 5'1" women to drive 12,000 pound, 20-foot trucks in parking lots designed for sedans and hatchbacks.
What would make driving safer would be to require better qualifications and a different license class for 5'1" women to drive trucks with 400 horsepower engines which are utilized primarily to travel the two blocks from the bank to the grocery store at 75MPH, tailgating everyone else on the road all the way.
That would be a start. Yeah, the radar might help too, but then again, perhaps there wouldn't be a ten-yard wide blind spot if a) the windows weren't five feet off the ground and b) if a more sensible vehicle size could be offered, like say, five tons instead of six.
Just a thought.
Business isn't willing to pay for products, innovation and careers, so we get brands, mortgage commercials and layoffs.
In Japan, the side mirrors on not mounted by the doors, but by the headlights. This change of angle gets rid of the blindspot. Is it ugly? A little, but it works well.
I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress -J Adams
the system alerts the driver by lighting a warning icon on the outside rearview mirror for that side of the vehicle.
Like the turn signal I've seen on Ford Expeditions, etc.? If the warning icon is on the outside of the car, then it's got the added effect of being visible to other cars on the road. Someone else would know when they're in your blind spot because your mirror is warning them, too. Interesting.
You want a sig? I can get you a sig... Hell, I can get you a sig by 3 o'clock this afternoon... with nail polish.
I always thought this technology would be great. But forget about displaying a warning on the rear-view mirror. It would be cool if it was hooked up to a HUD on the front windshield. So if someone is next to you, that side of your front windshield (only an inch or two) would be tinted/glowing red (transparent of course).
Sure, it helps when changing lanes, but also when a ladder falls off of the truck in front of you and you have to make a spit second decision (no time to look up at your review) you can just turn away from the 'red'.
And if both sides are read, just hit the brakes and hope for the best...
With their radar emissions I'll finally be able to take out obnoxious drivers using my handy-dandy roof rack mounted HARM missiles.
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
If you properly adjust your mirrors, there is no blind spot.
Most people adjust their side mirrors so that it shows the rear edge of their car and the lane directly behind them. You see much the same thing in your side mirrors as you do in your rearview mirror.
Instead, lean your head to your left until it touches the window glass, then adjust the left mirror until you can just see the left rear corner of the car. Lean your head approximately the same distance to the right, until your head is near the middle of the car, and adjust your right mirror until you can just see the right rear corner of the car. When you sit up straight, you will no longer have a blind spot. Your side mirrors will no longer show you a distance view of the lane to either side, but you can easily see those positions in your rear view mirror. If you drive past another car, you will see the rear of the other car in your side view before the front drops out of sight in your peripheral vision. As you move past, you will see the rear of the car show up in your rearview mirror just before the front disappears from your side view mirror. No blind spot at all.
It will take a few days of driving for you to adjust yourself to the different view in your side mirrors; it will seem a bit awkward at first. But you really will have no blind spot.
"The legitimate powers of government extend only to such acts as are injurious to others." Thomas Jefferson.
If you watch motorcyclists, they perform a shoulder check, a quick glance over their shoulder to check their blind spot before they make a maneuver. It's called a lifesaver because that's exactly what it does. It's saved my life several times.
Most car drivers on the other hand are lazy, blind, incompetent morons who are safe in the knowledge that they have 2 tonnes of steel safety cage surrounding them, being completely safe they don't need to check their blind spots, too much like hard work. Radar will only increase the *impression* of safety and will otherwise be utterly irrelevant.
What's needed are 5 year re-testable licenses like those the HGV drivers have to pass every few years.
Government of the people, by corporate executives, for corporate profits.
How about... Putting the radar in the FRONT of the car, have a really annoying siren that goes off when the car is going over 50 MPH, and within 3 feet of someone else's rear bumper. The siren would be accompanied by a cell phone jamming signal, and the TV and radio would automatically go off as well. Additionally for the larger cars, a bulkhead would go up between the driver and the rear seats.
This contraption would be mandatory for all trucks, SUVs, souped-up Japanese compacts, and Volvos.
That would cause accidents to drop by about 90% in my estimation.
In that light, I expect that in many cases, a system like this will simply cause drivers to pay less attention to the road around them, supposedly safe in the knowledge that the new-fangled system will keep them out of trouble. Which it might do in many cases; but all? And meanwhile, people are learning the lesson that safety is the car's responsibility, and not theirs...
Ceterum censeo subscriptionem esse delendam.
Don't mix speed with the problem.
h tml
There would not be a need to "change lanes like crazy" if it wouldn't be for the selfish idiots who block faster lanes.
The reason for safety and ORDUNG on German Autobahns is the lane discipline and cortesy that is drilled into their drivers. The road for them is the way of transportation and not the way of demonstrating their ego.
Further reading: http://www.motorists.org/ericpeters/skillvsspeed.
Tigers respect lions, elephants and hippos. Maggots respect no one. (C) S. Dovlatov
Two points to this knee-jerk comment:
1) Smoking and obesity are choices that people make for themselves, which generally only affect themselves. If someone wants to smoke and give themselves lung cancer, that's not my problem and I really don't care unless they try to smoke near me (which is why anti-public-smoking laws are good), or they try to get the government to use my tax money to pay for their health care. (The issue of how it affects the children they live with is something different altogether I won't get into.) Car accidents are something that certainly can affect me, since I have to share the road with all the other moron drivers out there. Anything that can help these morons to avoid hitting me is probably a good thing. Of course, I make mistakes sometimes too, so I wouldn't mind having such a system to keep me from hitting someone as well.
2) What's with this "We spend all this money... when smoking and obesity kills a lot more people?" Who's "we"??? I'm not paying for these radar systems, unless I decide to purchase a vehicle with one installed. The technology was developed by the government for missiles, which is part of the government's job of providing a military and defense. So the basic technology is already developed and paid for, for a purpose that had nothing to do with cars. Now, some private companies are spending their own money to further develop this technology for use in cars. Obviously, they're spending this money (of their own) because they anticipate making profits by selling this technology to the automotive industry suppliers. Eventually, the people paying for this will be the people who buy cars that include it. If you don't like it, you're free to not buy such a car.
Just because someone somewhere is spending money on something that doesn't save the maximum number of lives in your eyes doesn't mean it's wasted, and is really none of your business when it's their own private money, not yours. How the hell do you think these companies would even be able to do anything about smoking and obesity? One's a defense contractor and one's an automotive supplier.