megatrends

Megatrends
benefits of active safety systems in reducing
expensive accidents and down time, they
will help to stimulate demand. And fleets are
already aware of the side benefit of
improved fuel economy and reduced
emissions when using a vehicle equipped
with AEBS and adaptive cruise control.
However, moving forward, the vehicle
integration complexity of systems that link
sensors, braking, steering, driver monitoring
and alert will drive CV manufacturers to
include these advanced systems as standard
equipment.
As you mentioned earlier, AEB has
been mandated for trucks and buses in
Europe, and there are moves to
mandate it in the US too. How long do
you think it will be before all trucks
are fitted with AEB? Do you envisage
AEB being fitted on all trucks globally?
Trucks have a long service life, so the rollout
of AEB and other advanced safety features
globally will take time. The Europe mandates
that start in 2013 for AEB - or AEBS - and
LDW are clearly accelerating the market, and
I expect to see other regions roll out similar
requirements. It will truly have a measurable
benefit on road safety.
Is the truck industry leading other
sectors in terms of technology
developments in any particular areas of
safety?
Although active safety sensor development
was driven initially by the automotive market
need for high performance radar and vision
systems, the CV market could be in the lead
when it comes to the implementation of
vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-toinfrastructure
systems.
What role do you think telematics and
connectivity will play in truck safety
over the next decade?
Connectivity will be a major development in
the coming years for both light duty and CV
markets. Fleet owners and drivers will
demand more information that is enabled by
connectivity systems, and overall vehicle
safety will be enhanced as V2V and V2I
essentially extends the range of today’s radar
and vision sensors to help keep CV drivers
out of danger well ahead of any potential
accidents. Governments are interested in
this technology not just for the potential to
save lives, but also to address the growing
problem of highway overcrowding - as these
systems lend themselves to enabling
smoother traffic flow.
Do you anticipate connectivity-related
safety technology to focus on vehicle-
to-grid or vehicle-to-vehicle over the
next decade?
I expect advances in both, although a focus
on vehicle-to-vehicle will predominate in
countries that will not make the significant
investment for vehicle-to-grid infrastructure
systems.
As safety requirements become more
stringent, how will suppliers and OEMs
be able to deliver technology at an
affordable cost, particularly in
emerging markets where total cost of
ownership comes first, and where there
is an emergent low-cost, or lower-cost,
truck market?
Advanced safety technology product costs
have come down significantly due to a
relentless pursuit of cost reduction while
optimising performance in real-world driving
situations. Development and verification costs
are also being reduced as the technology
matures. Since Delphi’s first launch of vehicle
radar systems in 1999, we have seen great
movement down the price curve as we
evolve more efficient designs and our supply
base makes advances in lower cost
processors and components. As volume
increases, I expect this trend to continue. This
will enable standard-fitment of these
technologies in all markets.
45 Automotive World Megatrends magazine | www.automotiveworld.com Q1 2013