Large Animal Detection Featured in New Cars at New York International Auto Show
New Volvo includes a system that helps prevent collisions with large animals.
— -- Moo-ve over!
Volvo showed off its large animal detection system at the New York International Auto show this week, demonstrating how technology coming to its vehicles in 2017 can detect large animals, such as a cow or a moose, and take action to ensure there isn't a collision between the animal and the vehicle.
"The radar is constantly sending out a signal and constantly looking for something and it will sense when there is an object. The camera then takes video of it and attempts to identify what the object is. ... Is this object real or not and if it is, what is it?" Jim Nichols, a Volvo spokesman, told ABC News at the New York International Auto Show.
A central control unit determines if the object is a threat and if so, how to proceed.
"An audible and haptic warning will come on so you will feel the steering wheel...You will see a visual warning up on the dashboard -- a row of red lights will appear -- and you'll hear a tone that comes up," Nichols said. "All of that is to say, 'There is something in the path that needs your attention.'"
If a driver does not react, the car will take action at the last possible second, automatically applying the brakes one second before impact, Nichols said.
Volvo already has a system that can detect pedestrians and bicyclists, Nichols said.
While Volvo's system comes out next year, in the future, automatic emergency braking won't just be an option in high-end vehicles. In six years, the feature will be standard in all new cars, auto makers and regulators announced this month.
Twenty auto makers representing more than 99 percent of the U.S. car market announced with the U.S. Department of Transportation their commitment to making it a standard feature by Sept. 1, 2022.
Automatic emergency braking can help prevent car crashes or reduce their severity by applying brakes for the driver. The system uses sensors such as radar, cameras or lasers to detect an imminent crash, warning the driver and applying the brakes if the driver doesn't respond quickly enough.
ABC News' Susanna Kim contributed to this report.
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