The commercial vehicle business unit of Tata Motors is moving ahead with the development of safety-enhancing advanced driver assistance system solutions for deployment on its medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles.
This ambitious goal is aimed at reducing the number of road accidents, increasing vehicular as well as occupant safety, in a broad range of visibility conditions.
Offering enhanced operational efficiency the systems will also help reduce operating costs for fleets.
After becoming the first original equipment manufacturer to deploy Electronic Stability Control (ESC) for medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles last year, Tata Motors has now launched a range of new safety technologies.
The Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) being offered by Tata Motors include a Collision Mitigation System (CMS) and a Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS) for PRIMA and SIGNA trucks.
Working in collaboration with Wabco India, Tata Motors will implement Wabco’s pioneering technologies which have been optimized for India’s operating conditions.
Designed to help mitigate some of the most common causes of accidents involving commercial vehicles, advanced driver assistance system solutions enhance vehicle safety, driver comfort and effectiveness.
Through this partnership, Tata Motors becomes the first OEM to provide a host of specific safety technologies in their vehicles, including Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Automatic Traction Control (ATC), Hill Start Aid (HSA), a Collision Mitigation System (CMS) and a Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS).
Girish Wagh, president, commercial vehicles, Tata Motors, says: “Tata Motors has always pioneered transformation in the Indian commercial vehicle Industry with the launch of innovative new products and services.
“The introduction of Advanced Driver Assistance System solutions is yet another example of how well we understand our customers and offer solutions that will benefit operators and drivers through cutting-edge safety capabilities which help reduce the risk of accidents.
“We highly value Wabco’s global technology leadership and ongoing commitment to strengthen the safety performance of our medium and heavy commercial vehicles. Helping us deliver sustained value for our customers, we will continue to partner with Wabco to develop industry-leading safety and efficiency technologies.”
Speaking about the partnership, Mr P. Kaniappan, Wabco India managing director, says: “We are proud to continue our strong partnership with Tata Motors with the introduction of Wabco’s industry-leading portfolio of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems to India’s dynamic growth market.
“As a global technology leader, Wabco is delighted to support Tata Motors with innovative and pioneering technologies that deliver sustained and differentiating value. It will play an important role in helping to reduce road accidents as well as enhancing operational efficiency.
“Tata Motor’s adoption of Wabco’s ADAS is also an important milestone in the technology roadmap towards autonomous driving for India’s commercial vehicle industry.”
Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) for medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicles relies on sensors, such as radar and camera, to provide enhanced vehicular and occupant safety.
Helping to mitigate driver error, these systems are capable of identifying a variety of different road traffic hazards to enhance driver and vehicle safety.
Furthermore, integration of advanced driver assistance systems in the vehicle can help ensure the on-time delivery of goods by improving driver comfort and effectiveness as well as reducing accident downtime and related costs, for example.
Research conducted by India’s Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Indian expressway and highway accidents reveals that the majority of road fatalities are caused by loss of vehicle control resulting in rear-end collisions, unintended road departures and vehicle rollovers.
Helping to reduce driver error, Collision Mitigation Systems, Lane Departure Warning Systems and Electronic Stability Control will significantly enhance commercial vehicle safety on India’s roads.
The Wabco Collision Mitigation System (OnGuardASSIST) implemented by Tata Motors, alerts the driver to potentially critical driving situations via acoustic, visual and haptic signals.
Should the driver fail to take corrective action, the system provides active braking on moving and stopping vehicles to mitigate or prevent impending rear-end collisions.
The system utilizes a powerful 77GHz radar sensor that maintains the system’s high performance in all weather conditions.
Its superior performance is particularly vital in poor visibility situations such as heavy rain, dense fog, blinding sunshine and night-time driving when camera-based sensors used on other collision mitigation systems may be impaired.
The key advantages of the Collision Mitigation System includes:
- Warns of moving, stopping and stationary vehicles ahead even in poor visibility conditions
- Active braking on moving and stopping vehicles when the system detects an impending collision
- Helps mitigate or avoid impending rear-end collisions to enhance safety
- Helps to avoid fatalities, injuries and accident-related costsHigh bandwidth enables accuracy in object detection
- Improves driver effectiveness across all levels of experience
- Optimizes vehicle uptime with less maintenance and repair requirements
The Wabco Lane Departure Warning System (OnLaneALERT) implemented by Tata Motors will help prevent unintentional lane departure, one of the most common causes of accidents involving commercial vehicles.
The system utilizes a forward-looking, windshield-mounted camera to monitor and calculate the vehicle’s position within the lane.
When OnLaneALERT detects the vehicle crossing lane markings without the turn signal being activated, the system sounds an audible warning.
This alerts the driver to take corrective action to prevent potential collisions and lane-departure-related road accidents.
Key advantages of the Lane Departure Warning System include:
- Helps vehicle drivers to remain within road lanes
- Recognizes lane markings and evaluates vehicle position
- Warns the driver with an audible alarm
- Alerts the driver to take corrective action to prevent unintentional lane driftHelps avoid potential collisions and lane departure road accidents
- Supports the driver in maintaining their attention levels and encourages the use of turn signals
