| |
|
09.06.2009
Road safety that makes sense
In cooperation with the TU Munich, BMW has successfully developed an intelligent accelerator pedal.
It determines the ideal speed in each traffic situation and informs the driver accordingly – literally through the sole of his shoe. This “remarkable achievement in the enhancement of road safety” has earned the development department the renowned Joseph Ströbl Award.
Dr. Christian Lange is a driving enthusiast. Nevertheless, he prefers – and this is rather unusual for an driving enthusiast – to talk about what he does not master at the wheel; like the correct assessment of one’s own speed in comparison to other vehicles for instance, or the accurate judgement of distances in order to be able to adjust one’s own speed accordingly. And the research engineer also noticed that he found it difficult to immediately register a change in the speed limit, even when he is paying full attention to the current situation on the road.
Capabilities such as these are indeed hardly learnable. According to a scientist at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Traffic Sciences at Würzburg University (IZVW), people possess, for example, an outstanding ability to anticipate traffic situations. However, they do have weaknesses when it comes to correctly assessing the distances and speeds, or memorising a large amount of vital information. “If we had to orientate ourselves solely to the proximate traffic situation when driving on the motorway, we would have no chance of keeping the vehicle securely on the road,” Prof. Hans-Peter Krüger from the IZVW explains.
Communicating important information intuitively
Engineers attuned to this long ago and developed driver assistance systems that “think ahead”, helping drivers when they show human weakness. The fascinating thing about this is the question of how this should be implemented, after all, it is still a human being sitting behind the wheel. He or she is the most effective “system” within the vehicle. So it would not make any sense if the vehicle were to be electronically controlled as the computer saw fit. On the other hand, the computer is a competent and useful co-driver – if its recommendations are conveyed “intuitively”. In short: the onboard system must assist the driver without patronising him or overburdening him with information. Therefore, the BMW Group focuses on the development of ergonomic man-machine interfaces via which the onboard electronics evaluate recommendations and convey them to the driver in an “intuitive” way.
Possibly one of the most interesting proposals for an ergonomic man-machine system has been developed by Christian Lange. The 30 year old is not only an avid BMW enthusiast but also a lecturer and research engineer with a chair in ergonomics at the TU Munich (TUM). In close cooperation with BMW Forschung und Technik GmbH he joined other TUM institutes in developing the “haptic accelerator pedal”.
The accelerator pedal “marks“ the ideal speed
The basic idea is relatively simply: Whilst it was previously necessary to depress the pedal with linearly increasing force, the haptic accelerator pedal varies the required amount of pressure. In this way it is possible to set “pressure points” on which one can comfortably “rest” one’s foot. If the pressure point is to be exceeded, a slightly higher amount of force is then necessary. In this way the accelerator pedal “marks” certain speeds. “ The driver accelerates until he feels the pressure point, as he has then normally reached the ideal speed. Now, without further effort, he can, so to speak, rest his foot on the accelerator pedal. Or overrule the speed recommendation by slightly depressing the accelerator,” Lange explains.
Similar ideas have existed for many years. What makes this technology so special (and this is the true accomplishment in engineering and scientific terms) is on the one hand to adjust the actuators that convert the electric signals into pressure points so accurately that they serve each driver to an optimum degree, regardless of how much strength he possesses or which type of shoe he is wearing. On the other hand, thanks to ambient sensors, a premium class vehicle today offers an abundance of utilisable information. Consequently, the pressure points are not set at 50 or 130 km/h as a general rule, but individually calculated according to the current traffic situation. For example, the camera featured in the new BMW 7 Series can recognise road signs. Based on an identified speed limit such as “80“ and data pertaining to the distance from the vehicle in front, the onboard computer calculates according to an information matrix an optimum speed that is conveyed to the driver by means of the pressure point. If the navigation system signifies that the vehicle is approaching a built-up area, slight counter pressure is applied to the foot via the accelerator pedal, so that the driver is able to enter the urban area at 50 km/h.
10 percent less fuel consumption
There is a further advantage: Because the onboard computer can identify road junctions, traffic lights and speed limits, the accelerator is able to recommend a gentle and hence economical manner of driving. BMW engineers have provided evidence of a possible fuel saving of up to ten percent. “In future it is quite conceivable – and also planned – that traffic lights, for instance, are intelligently linked to the vehicle via BMW ConnectedDrive so that the onboard computer is able to identify red phases. The haptic accelerator can react accordingly and either propose a premature reduction in speed or signify an ideal speed by means of the pressure point, so that the driver may fully utilise a progressive signal system as a matter of course.
 
Christian Lange has received a great deal of recognition and, last year, was even presented with the renowned Joseph Ströbl subsidy award for his work. “Within the framework of his scientific work, Dr. Lange was able not only to contribute significantly towards an increase in active safety, but also towards a reduction in fuel consumption,” commented the Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann during his laudation.
“Not to give recommendations for an ideal speed using the conventional method using visual or audible means, but to convey them via “feedback to the foot” is a crucial step towards optimising the interaction between man and machine,” emphasises Dr. Klaus Bengler, who has assumed organisational responsibility for the project for BMW Forschung und Technik GmbH. Through the use of haptics, i.e. the “perceptible” transmission of information, man and machine are so directly and intuitively connected that researchers speak of “cooperative assistance”
Contact analogue head-up display
"In order to also provide this “cooperative assistance” visually, engineers working with Christian Lange and Klaus Bengler have developed a “contact analogue head-up display”, a technology scheduled to be launched on the market in around three years. In addition to the conventional head-up display featured in BMW Group vehicles and via which information regarding speed and distance to the vehicle in front are made visible on the windscreen, the contact analogue display visualises additional situation-related data using special optics in the respective direction and distance in front of the vehicle. This technology facilitates the display of a distance bar that marks the spot on the road that the vehicle will reach, for instance, within three seconds. So the faster a vehicle moves, the further away the projected image of the distance bar will be. “In this way the recommendations given by the haptic accelerator pedal are supplemented with graphic information,” Lange explains. Consequently, understanding and acceptance of the system are further enhanced."
Cooperation initiative CAR@TUM
“Innovations such as these would hardly be possible without cooperating with universities and research institutions,” Klaus Bengler emphasises. Whilst universities have the advantage of being able to develop their own ideas relatively independent of pressure to succeed economically, the premium car manufacturer BMW Group possesses the ability to recognise groundbreaking innovations and, in joint collaboration with researchers, ensure their consistent ongoing development. “This intensive collaboration is therefore a crucial integral part of our research and development strategy, focusing on the merging of research and marketable utilisation at an early stage,” says Bengler.
The project “haptic accelerator pedal”, with which researchers were occupied for a period of two years, is therefore only a part of the high-tech research work carried out by the BMW Group and the TU Munich within the framework of the comprehensive cooperation initiative “Munich Centre of Automotive Research”, known in short as CAR@TUM. The duration of each project is designed to allow doctoral candidates at the TU Munich to earn a doctorate at the same time. “Through the research work that has been created within the framework of this initiative we are able not only to gain fresh knowledge in the area of basic research, but also to give very selective support to young academics wishing to gain qualifications,” emphasises Professor Raymond Freymann, head of BMW Forschung und Technik GmbH. Professor Dr. Wolfgang A. Herrmann, President of the TU Munich uses similar words: “The close and well- coordinated collaboration ensures that innovative technologies and highly qualified graduates alike find their way into future markets.” The BMW Group is, therefore, a “partner of excellence” for the university.
Of course, Christian Lange’s view is a little more down-to-earth: “Any technology that assists me as a driver without patronising me is not only a challenge to me as an engineer, but also enhances the pleasure I get from driving.” Under these circumstances he cannot envisage anything more fascinating than continuing to offer assistance in the development of such technologies. To him, winning the Joseph Ströbl Award was an additional shot in the arm.
|
|
|
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}