Auburn Hills-based automotive technology supplier Continental has expanded its offerings of technology designed to reduce child fatalities.
The company’s digital access system, CoSmA, now has a potentially lifesaving Child-Presence-Detection (CPD) function. When outdoor temperatures reach 80 degrees Fahrenheit, in-car temperatures can reach more than 110 degrees within half an hour.
This has the potential to be life-threatening for young children left behind in vehicles, research from the University of Georgia shows. Nearly 40 children a year in the U.S. die from heat stroke in vehicles, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
Continental’s CPD function uses ultra-wideband (UWB) technology that detects a child left alone in the vehicle cabin and sends out a warning within seconds. The CPD function also is engineered to address vehicle manufacturers’ needs to meet in-cabin safety targets in anticipation of the upcoming Euro NCAP safety rating and U.S. regulations, which are striving for new child safety requirements in the vehicle by 2025.
“We were first to market with the ultra-wideband for digital vehicle access,” says David Muscat, segment chief engineer for architecture and networking business area at Continental North America. “Now we can utilize this same technology to potentially save children’s lives by detecting if they were left behind in a vehicle. An innovative product that began with convenience now has lifesaving capabilities.”
The CPD function is embedded into the already existing CoSmA UWB digital access system, which enables drivers to use their smart phone or device as a car key for hands-free access.
To detect children that are left behind, the UWB system works in a “reflective mode.” This means it receives its own transmitted UWB signals back from micro-motions of an object. By detecting a change in frequency or phase of a returned signal, distance, and velocity of the moving object can be measured. Even the tiniest motion, such as the movement of a child’s chest while breathing, can be detected by the sensors.
Based on unique respiration rates and micro-body-movements, the CPD with UWB system can classify passengers as infants, children, or adults. If infants or children are left behind in the car, the CPD system can send an audible, visual, or haptic alert to the driver in as few as 10 seconds. The technology also is able to detect infants and children in any seating position, even if they are covered by a blanket or hidden in a cabin-footwell.
