News: Lexus shows off new safety tech at CES

It may not be the prettiest Lexus you've ever seen, but this LS-based contraption is almost certainly the safest Lexus, possibly the safest car, of all time.

It's called the Safety Research Vehicle and Lexus is showing it off at the vast (and vastly important) Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The car has been built to demonstrate ongoing efforts around autonomous vehicle safety technologies and explain Toyota's approach to reducing global traffic fatalities and injuries. The vehicle, based on a Lexus LS, advances the industry toward a new era of integrated safety management technologies.
The vehicle systems are capable of tasks such as scanning movement of objects around it, identifying a green light from a red light and measuring the trajectory of the vehicle on the road by using a 360-degree LIDAR laser on the roof of the vehicle which detects objects around the car up to about 70 meters; three high definition colour cameras to detect objects about 150 meters away, including traffic light detection using the front camera and approaching vehicles using the side cameras.
Radars on the front and sides of the vehicle measure the location and speed of objects to create a
comprehensive field of vision at intersections. There's also a distance measurement indicator located on a rear wheel measures travel distance and speed of the vehicle and an inertial measurements unit on the roof measures acceleration and angle changes to determine vehicle behaviour.

GPS antennas on the roof estimate angle and orientation even before the vehicle is in motion and the research vehicle is a testing platform aimed at the development of systems capable of enhancing the driver’s perception of their environment, assisting in the decision-making process and improving overall driving skills.

“In our pursuit of developing more advanced automated technologies, we believe the driver must be fully engaged,” said Mark Templin, Toyota group vice president and general manger of the Lexus Division. “For Toyota and Lexus, an autonomous vehicle does not translate to a driverless vehicle, but rather a car equipped with an intelligent, always-attentive co-pilot whose skills contribute to safer driving.”

Toyota has committed to new research toward an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS), integrating the car with the driving environment. To accelerate development of vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-roadside infrastructure communications, Toyota began full-scale operations in November at new 8.6 acre ITS proving grounds, located within the Higashi-Fuji Technical Center in Toyota City, Japan. Modelled after urban roads, the driving environment replicates roads and traffic signals and simulates real-life traffic situations using other vehicles, pedestrians and control devices.

The system is designed to help prevent accidents involving pedestrians and other vehicles using information continuously collected by the vehicle from other vehicles, infrastructure and pedestrians. Connecting people, vehicles, traffic environments and infrastructure with state-of-the-art electronic and telecommunications technologies will help move toward safer and more efficient traffic environments. The Toyota ITS Proving Grounds will assist the company work toward the early practical adoption of evermore reliable systems by repeatedly conducting testing that can be difficult to perform on public roads, with changing environments.

“The real value of research projects like this is reinforcing our focus on what a few years ago seemed an impossible dream and is now becoming more plausible,” Templin said. “We, at TMC and Lexus, consider the elimination of traffic fatalities and injuries the ultimate goal of a society that values mobility.”


 

News: Road deaths at lowest level ever

Provisional road casualty figures for 2012 published this week show that a total of 161people tragically lost their lives on Irish roads in 2012. This is 25 fewer fatalities compared to 186 deaths last year and 51 fewer deaths compared to 2010 when 212 people lost their lives on the roads.


Road deaths have now fallen every year since 2006. Furthermore it is also the fifth year in a row that a new record low for fatalities in this country has been achieved.

The third Road Safety Strategy 2007 to 2012, which will be replaced in early 2013 with a new eight year strategy, set a target of reducing road deaths to no more than 252 deaths per annum by the end of 2012. Not only was this target achieved ahead of schedule in 2009, it was significantly surpassed. Since the beginning of 2007 there has been a 56% decrease in road deaths. While the total number of serious injuries sustained in crashes in 2012 is not yet available, there has been a 51% reduction in these injuries up to the end of 2011.

Minister for Transport Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar, said, “For the seventh year in a row the number of people killed on the roads has dropped. In 2012 the loss of life was the lowest ever recorded. The ongoing effort to reduce the tragedy of road deaths is working. Further key road safety measures will be implemented this year, and the new Road Safety strategy will be published. But this change really comes down to the efforts of every single road user. We can never forget those who lost their lives on the roads in 2012, but next year we can take it a step further. I urge everyone to change one thing about their behaviour on the roads next year. It will make a difference.”

Commenting on the release of the provisional figures Mr. Gay Byrne, Chairman, Road Safety Authority said “At the end of 2006 the year before the third Road Safety Strategy was launched, we were losing a life on the road every single day. Six years later and this has dropped to three lives lost every week. So as a result of your actions, the road using public, you are preventing four deaths every week now compared to 2006. While one death is one too many, this is an extraordinary achievement and something of which you should all be very proud. The challenge now is to build on this success. We have three more lives a week to save.”

“We know we can do better because countries like Sweden, the UK and the Netherlands have done it. The task begins with the development and publication of the new Road Safety Strategy, which will cover the period 2013 to 2020. Key elements of this new strategy will focus on serious injury reduction, tackling repeat road traffic offenders and developing more forgiving roads. While government agencies will work tirelessly to implement this new strategy, ultimately if we want safer roads only you can get us there.”

RSA Chief Executive, Mr. Noel Brett, paid tribute to the work of the Gardai and Emergency Services, “It is important, as we come to the end of another year, that we acknowledge and thank those on the front line in road safety. The Gardai, Ambulance and Paramedic crews, Fire Brigade personnel, Nurses, Doctors and Carers who are responsible for ensuring we stay safe on the roads and for caring for those who have been affected by road trauma”.

“2013 will be another challenging year, but one which the Board and staff of the RSA are looking forward to as it will see the launch of a new Road Safety Strategy, the introduction of a new plastic card driving licence, the transformation of the Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness Testing system, and Ireland’s presidency of the European Union, which will include the hosting of a major EU conference on road safety in March 2013.”

Commissioner of An Garda Síochána Mr Martin Callinan  said today: “We wish to thank all road users who have made a conscious and positive change to both their attitudes and behaviour on our roads. This change has resulted in another record low in terms of road safety in Ireland. This is evident in particular in our drink driving arrests which are down for the fifth year in a row, whilst there have been more Garda Mandatory Alcohol Checkpoints in 2012, compared to 2011. In 2007 the rate of detection was approximately 1 in 25, now it’s approximately 1 in 50. This clearly shows increased compliance by responsible members of the public.”

Commissioner Callinan continued: “Although we have saved 25 lives compared to 2011, we can all do more to reduce fatalities and serious injuries for 2013 and beyond. In 2012 we identified Sunday as being the most dangerous day of the week on our roads, and in particular between 4pm and 6pm. To some Sunday is a day of leisure but this fact serves as a reminder to all that collisions can happen to anyone at any time. We all must remember that complacency can cost lives.”

News: Volvo puts V60 plugin hybrid through safety wringer

Volvo has a reputation for safety that is second to none and it believes that an electrified car should be as safe as any other new Volvo car. 


This is now highlighted by the latest EuroNCAP crash test results. The new Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid has achieved the highest ever score for a plug-in hybrid. The five stars in the recent test, which included a frontal offset collision at 64 km/h (40 mph), demonstrates that the V60 Plug-in Hybrid has the same high safety level as the standard V60.

"We apply the same high standards to all our products. The Euro NCAP score demonstrates that the ingenious V60 Plug-in Hybrid features the same outstanding safety level as the standard car," says Jan Ivarsson, Senior Manager Safety Strategy & Requirements at Volvo Car Group.

"The Plug-in Hybrid has been exposed to an extensive test programme during the development phase, as all our new car models," says Ivarsson. "This includes full-scale crash tests with different load cases, such as frontal collision, rear and side collisions to verify that also the battery technology fulfils our stringent safety requirements. The V60 Plug-in Hybrid also offers all unique Volvo active safety functions, such as City Safety, Collision Warning with full Auto Brake and Pedestrian Detection."

Production of the new V60 Plug-in Hybrid is ramping up and the first 1,000 ‘Pure Limited' cars were sold out even before they reached the showrooms. After this initial production of cars for model year 2013, production of the Plug-in Hybrid will increase to 4,000-6,000 cars for model year 2014 – and next year's build slots are already filling up.

The Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid is the synthesis of close cooperation between Volvo Car Group and Swedish electricity supplier Vattenfall. The two companies have financed the development project jointly.

The driver of the V60 Plug-in Hybrid need make no compromise in their motoring by using the car's three driving modes: Pure, Hybrid and Power. Fuel consumption is just 1.8 l/100 km (48 g/km CO2) in Hybrid mode (NEDC driving cycle).

In addition, the driver can choose to cover up to 50 kilometres (31 miles) on electric power with zero tailpipe emissions - or release the combined capacity of the diesel engine and electric motor to create a performance driver's car delivering 215+70 horsepower, 440+200 Nm of torque and acceleration from 0-62 mph in 6.1 seconds. The car is due to go on sale in Ireland towards the middle of 2014, with prices likely to start from around €50,000.

News: Road Safety Authority urges drivers to check their fitness

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is using the opportunity of Road Safety Week to publicise the need for us all to pay attention to our health and how it affects our driving ability and thus our safety and that of those around us.

A series of lectures was given on Monday by Professor Desmond O’Neill, Director of the National Office for Traffic Medicine, RCPI / RSA and Professor Richard A Marottoli, Associate Professor in Geriatric Medicine at Yale University of Medicine. In his presentation, Professor O’Neill cited new research which showed that road collisions decreased by 45% in cases where appropriate advice was given to drivers with medical conditions.

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Mr Leo Varadkar TD opened the lecture, addressing almost 150 delegates in the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI).

“Traffic medicine is a relatively new area of specialty so I am delighted to be here at today’s lecture to hear the experience and research in this area from other countries. I am particularly pleased that the RCPI and the RSA, through the National Office for Traffic Medicine, are working towards the development of guidelines on medical fitness to drive. This will go a long way towards generating understanding among medical professionals and road-users of the effect of certain medical conditions and their treatment on the safety of road-users.”

Mr Noel Brett, Chief Executive, Road Safety Authority said: “The purpose of this year’s lecture is to review and discuss international best practice in an effort to develop similar standards in Ireland. Understanding the impact of an injury or disease, or the way certain medicines might affect driving, is vital to the safety of road-users and will have a significant impact on reducing collisions on our roads.”

“The RSA is currently working with the RCPI on the development of medical fitness to drive guidelines so that medical professionals and drivers can better understand the potential risks associated with certain conditions and medications. This is not about preventing people from driving, but promoting and prolonging safe driving by supporting medical practitioners and drivers in making decisions about their fitness to drive.”

At the lecture, Professor Desmond O’Neill, Director, National Office for Traffic Medicine, RCPI / RSA, cited recent research from Canada in his presentation, ‘Mobility and Traffic Safety, A Lifespan Approach’.

“We are currently looking at international best practice to gain an insight into how best to address this issue in Ireland. A recent study* conducted in Canada showed that road collisions decreased by 45% in cases where appropriate advice was given to drivers with medical conditions. The new guidelines that we are developing with the RSA will help to ensure that medical professionals and road-users are aware of the risks associated with certain conditions and treatments, and how they should be managed in the context of safe driving.” 

Attendees also heard from Professor Richard A. Marottoli, Associate Professor in Geriatric Medicine at Yale University of Medicine who presented his research into enhancing older driver safety. In his presentation, 'Enhancing Older Driver Safety: Assess, Intervene, and Advise', he outlined how no longer being able to drive can be detrimental to many older people and severely affect their mobility and independence.

 Professor Marottoli said: “It is important to have a holistic view: how do we maintain out-of-home mobility while optimising safety? Most older drivers are safe. The difficult part for clinicians is to identify those at increased risk and helping their transition to driving less or not at all, and there is recent evidence for a number of interventions to help prolong safe driving.”

The lecture also signified the first outing of the recently established RCPI / RSA National Office for Traffic Medicine. An early priority for the Office has been the creation of fitness to drive guidelines for medical professionals as well as the necessary training and support to enable the smooth and consistent implementation of the rules. Guidelines relating to car and motorcycle drivers (known as Group 1 licence holders) are planned for issue before the end of the year. Work in relation to Group 2 licence holders (trucks and buses) is commencing and will be complete by mid 2013.

The RSA Lecture is the first in a series of events taking place during ‘Irish Road Safety Week’. Full details on all of the events taking place throughout the country are available on www.rsa.ie