En route to the accident-avoiding car; Continental creates a new safety dimension by combining vehicle components with system experience

Continental has enhanced the performance of ContiGuard, its comprehensive vehicle safety system, which interlinks the brake and driver assistance systems all the vehicle's active and passive safety components, and integrates environmental sensors and telematics functions. Some of these components are already installed in a variety of vehicles, increasingly even in mid-range cars and compact models. New possibilities for exploiting ContiGuard have now arisen through the incorporation of navigation data, the electronic horizon (eHorizon) and an even better driver interface, the so-called HMI (Human-Machine-Interface).

For example, vehicle navigation and GPS locating know-how can be used for more than just convenience. Data held in the navigation system about the road ahead, about dangerous road junctions, sharp bends or potential accident black spots through forested areas can be analyzed to supplement the safety systems. The name of this module is eHorizon, the electronic horizon. "Every additional piece of information about accident risks helps to make the system more reliable," according to Dr. Ralf Cramer, President of the Chassis & Safety Division. The system architecture, with built-in redundancy, also plays a part - the fast-acting computers in the control units monitor each other and check the data obtained for plausibility.

With the system working inconspicuously in the background, the driver is unaware of these computer processes. The important thing for him is that he should be presented with warnings in such a way that he can grasp them immediately and intuitively take the correct decisions. Design engineers call this the Human-Machine-Interface (HMI). The sheer volume of data limits the effectiveness of the visual indicators in the instrument cluster on the dashboard and the displays in the center console; it also distracts the driver from concentrating on the road. In a fully-developed HMI design, intelligent function management will decide what data is displayed where; top priority messages will be shown on the head-up display projected onto the windshield directly in the driver's field of vision. But this nowhere near exhausts the capacity of the data channels since acoustic warning signals are also part of the multi-modal design concept. It is possible for the driver to be spoken to directly, and perhaps for the navigation system to suggest that he turn off at the next service station if the driver's reactions lead the system to suspect that he is about to fall asleep. The driver can be warned by sensory impulses that he must react immediately; if the system has detected a hazard behind a bend, greater counterpressure in the accelerator pedal will tell the driver to slow down. If the car is in danger of wandering off the road, the steering wheel will vibrate and a slight pressure will indicate which way the driver needs to steer.

"ContiGuard represents a decisive step along the path towards Vision Zero", stresses Dr. Ralf Cramer. Vision Zero describes circumstances in which road users are so well protected that no more deaths or serious injuries occur. Intelligent vehicles can help prevent accidents and therefore reduce the number of injuries to passengers and other road users. In ContiGuard, Continental has brought together all its expertise in active and passive safety systems, starting with brakes and suspension components, via ABS and ESC, to integrating environmental sensors (radar, infrared and camera systems) and telematics. At the heart of ContiGuard is a risk calculator in the vehicle which determines the probability of an accident in any given traffic situation and, based on this information, initiates the necessary action to avoid an accident completely. If this is not possible, the system attempts to at least keep the consequences of the accident to a minimum. The brakes, for example, are pre-filled, the brake assist is prepared for maximum deceleration, the safety belts are tensioned, windows and sliding roof closed and even the airbags "forewarned" for optimum control if initiated.

The use of the Closing Velocity (CV) sensor as a pre-crash warning system shows that added benefits can be generated by the intelligent interlinking of existing systems. The CV sensor optically monitors the immediate area some ten to fifteen meters in front of the vehicle and is mainly intended to prevent rear-end collisions in urban traffic. However, the CV sensor can also enhance passive safety in the vehicle by detecting early on that the vehicle is about to collide with an obstacle. The system is not only able to calculate the expected severity of the crash but also its direction and the impact point. Consequently, restraint systems and airbags can be activated decisive fractions of a second earlier and thus function more effectively. This has advantages, particularly in the event of a so-called pole crash, a collision with a relatively thin obstacle such as a tree or lamp post.