Saturday, May 8, 2010

Volvo Auto-Brake System Demo...Failed

This remembered me to MIROS 1st crash crash few months ago. The expectations were simple. Hold a press conference to demonstrate how the “Collision Warning with Auto Brake” feature on the Swedish model of the Volvo S60 worked, send it towards a stationary truck at 35k/hr, and use the tremendous new technology to stop the car without human interaction.

The truck was placed. Cameras rolled. The S60 achieved its speed. It just forgot to stop.



Volvo, their tested S60, and their reputation for building safe vehicles took a dent when, to the amused surprise of the onlooking press, the vehicle slammed into the back of the truck it was intended to avoid. The official word from Volvo was that there was human error involved in the preparation of the demonstration.

Amidst chuckles from the crowd, the Volvo MC could only say, “So ladies and gentlemen, we’ve had some kind of mishap in the testing here. I apologize for that. This car actually contains collision avoidance technology obviously not demonstrated in this crash.”

Source: Volvo News

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