Ever veer out of your lane while driving, only to be jolted into noticing by the loud honk of the car you’re about to hit? What if your car could actually “see” the lines on the pavement and warn you when you start to move outside them?
That’s the idea behind Subaru’s EyeSight system, debuting at the New York Auto Show. EyeSight consists of a pair of cameras mounted on either side of the rear-view mirror. They act as a kind of always-on extra pair of eyes for the driver, helping out when, for whatever reason, danger may be imminent.
The cameras constantly scan the road and the traffic around you, so the system is smart enough to know when you’re on the highway and when you’re in a parking lot.
There are three main benefits. First is pre-collision braking, which can detect when an object suddenly appears in the path of the car. If something jumps out, and the driver doesn’t react right away, the system can apply the brakes on its own, slowing and even stopping the car.
In a similar manner, EyeSight can also improve your cruise control by always maintaining a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you. And, yes, there’s a lane-departure warning, too.
Subaru cautions that the system isn’t intended as any kind of replacement for simple driver care and paying attention to the road. Like other sensor-based driving or parking-assist systems, it’s just a convenience, and a far cry from the self-driving cars Google and others are working on.
Subaru will offer EyeSight on the 2013 Outback and Legacy models but hasn’t said how much it will add to the price of the car.
Posted by Janine E. Mooney, Editor
April 06, 2012
