ZEEGNITION / Ishaan Rastogi
In an attempt to heighten on-road safety, engineers at Ford have created 180 degrees front and rear view cameras that will help drivers see around corners in addition to an automatic braking system that senses the presence of pedestrians
Engineers at Ford have designed a system which gives drivers a 180 degree view of what’s in front of or behind their car. This is particularly helpful at blind junctions where drivers are unable to see oncoming traffic or in situations where you are backing up onto a busy street. The angle of the lens combined with its clever positioning can actually show drivers whether or not the street is clear to approach as opposed to craning your neck to look around the bend while creeping forwards and keeping an ear out for the sound of oncoming vehicles. Although this system kind of works, pedestrians, bicycles and other silent modes of transport are still extremely difficult to keep track of.
Wide-angle lens cameras mounted in the front grill and rear tailgate of the car send video feeds directly to a screen mounted in the car thereby giving the driver a clear view of approaching traffic. The screen is split into three sections to clearly highlight from which direction a moving vehicle or pedestrian is approaching and saves you the hassle off leaning forwards to check for the same. The cameras themselves can be viewed in different combinations and are paired with distance sensors and on-screen guidelines that make parking the car an absolute breeze. Different camera angles and the split screen layout can all be activated at the touch of a button and the split screens automatically disperse when the car goes beyond 10kph. Due to the fact that the cameras are located on the extremities of the vehicle, chances are that they will collect a lot of dirt. To mitigate this issue, Ford has even equipped these tiny 1MP cameras with telescopic jet washers to keep them clean.
In addition to this, Ford has also developed a system that uses data from a front mounted camera and radar setup to detect and brake if the car is nearing a pedestrian on the road. The car signals the driver to stop and if he or she fails to act quickly enough, the system can brake automatically, applying full force if required. The system is set to debut in Europe as an option on the 2015 Mondeo before being added to rest of Ford’s fleet over time. The split-view 180 degree cameras on the other hand are already available on models such as the Galaxy, Edge, S-Max and Explorer with plans to roll out the technology in almost all Ford brand vehicles by 2020.
