ADAS equipment, it's mandatory! Only one month left: from July 7th, the EU regulation will come into force, making certain ADAS safety systems mandatory for all newly approved cars. This is the final stage of a long process that began in 2019, which has required manufacturers to make significant changes to adapt already approved cars to higher safety standards; in some cases, to end the production cycle of models that were not suitable for updating.
Until recently, most of these ADAS systems were available as sought-after and expensive options only on high-end cars. From next month, that will change. The new regulation aims to significantly reduce the number of accidents and casualties, based on the fact that over 90% of road accidents are caused by human error.
ADAS is an acronym for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems, active safety systems that aim to prevent accidents. Let's see which of these systems will become mandatory starting next July.
Intelligent Speed Adaptation or ISA: this is an evolution of cruise control. Equipped with a camera, it detects posted speed limits and, in case of violation, sends acoustic and visual signals to the driver, or directly intervenes on the accelerator. In the latter case, it can be temporarily deactivated, but reactivates every time the engine is restarted.
Automatic emergency braking: this is one of the most important systems. The technology detects the risk of a frontal collision with a vehicle, but also with a pedestrian or cyclist. The system warns the driver and automatically activates braking to avoid the collision, while also flashing the rear lights.
Drowsiness alert: there are different types, more or less sophisticated, based on the detection of different parameters. However, it is a system that, in case of an alarm, sounds an acoustic signal together with an image that appears on the dashboard display, to invite the driver to stop. It should be noted that European legislation has excluded systems that detect blinking, because the need for a camera pointed at the driver's face has been deemed to conflict with privacy regulations.
Alcolock predisposition: this is the device that assesses the driver's blood alcohol level and, if the values are out of range, prevents the engine from starting. The predisposition for future installation of the system will be mandatory
Lane assist: this is a system that prevents skidding or entering the opposite lane. It warns the driver and can intervene directly by acting on the steering to bring the car back on track; however, only the warning system is mandatory.
