Nearby object detection
SMV also has proximity sensor technology. Here you can see the description of it.
Proximity sensor
Car proximity sensors do very much what they say on the tin – they sense when your vehicle gets close to an object. How they work is less straightforward, with different types of sensors using different methods to help the driver avoid any nasty bumps.
Ultrasonic sensors, for example, use a type of sonar. Using echo-times from sound waves that bounce off nearby objects, the sensors can identify how far away the vehicle is from said object, and alert the driver the closer the vehicle gets. Electromagnetic sensors create an electromagnetic field around the bumper, and offer an alert whenever objects enter it.
Each system has its own method of alerting a driver through an escalating series of beeps, like the radar in Alien, is most common. In recent years, upgrades have been available, with some vehicles including a digital display which shows the part of the vehicle which is closest to the object.
Electromagnetic and ultrasonic sensors are the two most often used sensors for parking, and feature in many other applications, including burglar alarms. These sensors have been available for several years, and can either be built into a vehicle or bought and added separately.
Now, as automakers develop driverless vehicles, other types of sensors have come into play, with radar sensors – which use radio waves to determine the vehicle’s surroundings – playing a significant part in ensuring the safety and usability of an autonomous vehicle.
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While all of the sensors mentioned above prove useful for the cautious driver, their importance to the driverless vehicle only becomes fully apparent when they are integrated with other solutions, enabling capabilities like Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) and parking assist. Developers have used these existing technologies, and adapted them to empower the autonomous vehicle.
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ACC uses sensors (typically radar) to monitor the traffic ahead and focus on the car in-front in the same lane, then, the car is instructed by the system to stay behind the vehicle by a few seconds. The system is very much like traditional cruise control, only with the sensors doing the work, the car will pick up speed or slow down, depending on the vehicle in-front.