Toyota Motor Corp. will introduce less-costly crash-prevention systems to most of the vehicles it sells in its biggest markets starting next year, in a bid to usher the new technology into the mainstream.
The Japanese auto maker will offer two crash-prevention technologies for new cars in the U.S., Japan and Europe by the end of 2017, said Moritaka Yoshida, a Toyota senior managing officer who oversees safety technologies.
Toyota said the new technologies use both a camera and radar to detect objects near the car and alert drivers. The technologies also can slow down or brake a vehicle automatically to prevent collisions.
The automotive industry has been working to develop so-called active technologies that help drivers prevent accidents or drive more safely. Those efforts would join existing passive safety technologies that are intended to mitigate damages in an accident.
Mr. Yoshida said the new systems seek to provide “high safety performance to as many users as possible for an affordable price.”
Toyota is chasing rivals, including Ford Motor Co. of the U.S. and Hyundai Motor Co. of South Korea, that already offer automatic braking systems in mass-market models for the U.S.
While many auto makers already offer such technologies, many of them rely either on a camera or radar, and combining both is rare, said Toyota engineer Yukinori Yamada.
Toyota has developed two new crash-prevention systems, one for midsize and high-end cars and one for compact cars.
The system for midsize and high-end cars, called Toyota Safety Sense P, will consist of a single-lens video camera on the windshield near the rearview mirror and a millimeter-wave radar placed behind the Toyota emblem on the front.
Toyota Safety Sense P will be less expensive than crash-prevention systems in similar cars, Mr. Yoshida said. Currently, the system on the Lexus NX compact crossover sport-utility vehicle, consisting just of a millimeter-wave radar, costs about ¥60,000 ($500) in Japan.
The system for compact cars, called Toyota Safety Sense C, will consist of a single-lens camera and laser radar, placed on the windshield near the rearview mirror. It will cost about the same as crash-prevention systems on minicars in Japan, or roughly ¥50,000, Mr. Yoshida said.
Along with crash-prevention technologies, Toyota will also offer other functions such as an alert that helps vehicles travel in the center of the lane.
Continue reading the original article in WSJ.
