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Automatic Brakes Stopped Berlin Truck During Christmas Market Attack (dw.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the better-late-than-never dept.

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Deutsche Welle: The truck that plowed into a Berlin Christmas market, killing 12, came to a halt due an automatic braking system, according to German media reports on Wednesday. The automatic braking system potentially saved the lives of many more people in the recent terrorist attack. An investigation by newspaper "Suddeutsche Zeitung" and broadcasters "NDR" and "WDR" found the Scania R 450 semi-trailer stopped after between 70 and 80 meters (250 feet). The system was reportedly engaged after sensing a collision. Previous reports speculated that the truck had driven erratically and stopped due to the heroic actions of the truck's Polish driver, who lay fatally wounded in the cabin. In 2012 the European Union adopted regulations requiring all new trucks exceeding 3,500 kilograms be fitted with advanced emergency braking systems. The systems initially alert drivers and then take evasive action. The regulation was adopted to reduce the number of rear end collisions by trucks.

8 of 164 comments (clear)

  1. Double edged sword by Trachman · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Could have stopped. Should have stopped.... Technology is evolving fast.

    If this technologically non-savvy terrorist had no idea about automated braking, just think about technologically savvy terrorist who will be able to program automatic trucks to ignore collision by hacking certain sensors. We are talking about automatic road killing robot.

    How would you stop such autonomous cargo truck with no driver to shoot at?

    1. Re:Double edged sword by goose-incarnated · · Score: 4, Insightful

      How would you stop such autonomous cargo truck with no driver to shoot at?

      Fortunately you have to be kind of an idiot to want to murder people like this anyway.

      That fact doesn't lessen the threat; the world is filled with idiots, after all.

      --
      I'm a minority race. Save your vitriol for white people.
    2. Re:Double edged sword by AmiMoJo · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Sure, but if you strive to make the world idiot-proof it sucks for everyone.

      We shouldn't react to events like this by compounding the loss of life with a loss of rights, loss of dignity and loss of humanity. Most Germans can still remember what that was like.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    3. Re:Double edged sword by AmiMoJo · · Score: 4, Interesting

      1. There have not been "hoards" of Muslim hoodlums entering Germany. Most of the refugees are actually fleeing Islamic terrorists.

      2. The guy had his asylum application processed in good time. The problem was they could not deport him because his country would not take him back.

      3. The falling is that the security services knew about him but didn't stop him.

      This does not warrant your extreme, xenophobic reaction.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    4. Re:Double edged sword by ravenshrike · · Score: 4, Funny

      Well, it's good to know that in the event of a zombie apocalypse Europe will be completely screwed because none of their large vehicles will be able to plow through the zombie hordes or parked cars.

  2. Re:what, wait a second by Sique · · Score: 5, Insightful

    After you already hit something? What would you win by not hitting the brakes? People rear ending you still have their airbags and seatbelts and crumple zones, which will protect them from the worst. People in front of you don't. So breaking and getting some 40 ton heap of steel into stillstand as soon as possible once it is out of control (and because it hit something, there is enough proof to call it out of control) is in any case better than let it run to save the people driving to close behind it a few bucks by keeping their cars undamaged.

    --
    .sig: Sique *sigh*
  3. Re:SubjectIsSubject by Kierthos · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I'm pretty sure both books are routinely ignored.

    I went to school with a number of Muslim students. They didn't attack me, or condemn me, or anything like that. I was actually in a study group with a couple of them for one semester. And at least one of them routinely ignored the Koran's prohibition on drinking.

    I worked with at least one Muslim co-worker at my last job. He didn't attack me, or condemn me, or anything like that. I had a number of Muslim customers (including at least one who converted to Islam). None of them attacked me, or condemned me, or anything like that.

    There are an estimated 3.3 million Muslims living in the U.S. I think we would have noticed if most of them were routinely attacking Christians.

    It is not the religion, per se, that is the problem. It is fundamentalists or extremists who claim to be part of the religion that are the problem.

    --
    Mr. Hu is not a ninja.
  4. Re:You gave Trump's plan by 91degrees · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Was that before or after he called all Mexicans criminals

    He didn't.

    But hey, fake news is only fake when we disagree with it, right.