KO- TAG; New system warns drivers of pedestrians

An embedded system alerts the driver about the risk of collision and automatically activates the brakes of the vehicle of its own. Through Wi-Fi waves that the embedded the system identifies the presence of pedestrians equipped with tag (transponder). KO- TAG It is through Wi-Fi waves that the embedded system identifies the presence of pedestrians equipped with the tag. It is equipped with an automatic detection and tracking of ultra- sophisticated pedestrian spotted the child while he was still walking on the sidewalk, hidden behind parked vehicles.

The car stops instantly, avoiding the collision. This is a scene that going to takes place in a few years as the technology is still in the prototype stage. It has been submitted by Erwin Biebl team at the Technical University of Munich (Germany). Its principle is based on the wave communication between pedestrians or cyclists and the car in motion. The latter has an embedded system consisting of a set of antennas that emit a radio signal. The advantage of this technology is that it is not hindered by the presence of obstacles like cars, bus etc. Pedestrians are the ones equipped with a transponder.

 The transponder, a kind of beacon and when it receives signals from the car, it immediately sends back a similar signal indicating its presence. This signal is then picked up and located by the embedded antennas. The transponder comprises in addition a small inertial unit which measures in real time the movements of the person. Valuable information continuously feeds to the car. The onboard computer can calculate precisely the movement of the individual and define when there is a risk of collision.

If the time before the impact is greater than a second, the system sounds an alarm to warn the driver of imminent danger. If this time is less, this is the car that makes the decision to apply brake to avoid the collision, even if the pedestrian is not yet visible to the driver in the seat. It is this anticipation that makes the difference with existing detection technologies.

The technology available now is based on the use of a camera which identifies the pedestrian or cyclist and steps to monitor its behavior to initiate, if necessary, an emergency brake. “But if the pedestrian is hidden behind an obstacle, such as a parked car, it cannot be detected by the camera," said Erwin Biebl. But in this prototype model of Erwin Biebl the pedestrian and his movement can be identified and monitored by the on board system accurately. It will take some time before you see the new technology into the catalog of manufacturers. According to Erwin Biebl it will be marketed in 2020.