One of the main reasons for accidents especially on freeways is falling too short of a safe headway distance. This behaviour is often unintentional, and is caused by a lack of attention and the driver's inability for precise distance estimation. Within the TUEV Rheinland's `Integrated MMI-Solution for LOngitudinal COntrol (IMMIS-LOCO)' PROMETHEUS project, a driver assistance concept based on a visual display, an active gas pedal and an autonomous brake system (ITT Automotive Europe) is realized in an experimental vehicle. If the driver violates predefined distance limits, the assistance system presents a tactile warning (kick) on the active gas pedal combined with a visual explanation (pictogram) on the display. If the driver does not increase distance, the gas pedal is pushed back and the autonomous brake system is activated. This intervention can always be controlled and overridden by the driver. Based on field trials on German motorways with `naive subjects', driver acceptance and safety consequences are estimated. Layout of display, gas pedal and brake system, and experimental results are presented. (A)
Samenvatting