Improved accelerometers make cars, trucks safer

Improved accelerometers make cars, trucks safer

Electronic stability control (ESC) systems help drivers stay in command of their vehicles in tense situations by providing vital information to steering, braking, and power systems, avoiding skids or rollovers and actively preventing automobile accidents.

In fact, ESC systems may reduce fatal single-vehicle accidents some 30% to 50% in passenger cars or from 50% to 70% in larger vehicles, according a to 2007 review, “The Effectiveness of Electronic Stability Control in Real-World Crashes.”

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is so sure that ESC systems will save lives that it is mandating that most new, 2012-model-year cars and trucks include these active safety systems.

New Freescale accelerometers

This week, Freescale Semiconductor released two new accelerometers based on the company's latest high-aspect-ratio microelectromechanical systems technology that should provide so-called immunity to parasitic vibrations that amount to false positives. This immunity should make ESC systems based on the Freescale accelerometers both more driver friendly and more effective as an accident deterrent.

According to the company, these Xtrinsic MMA6900Q and MMA6901Q intelligent accelerometers include embedded single processing, 11-bit SPI-compatible digital data output, a relatively wide operating temperature range (–40° to 105°C), 3.3-V to 5-V single supply operation, and are AEC-Q100 Qualified.

Active automotive safety

ESC is just one type of active automotive safety system or, as some refer to them, intelligent vehicle system.

Other important and, perhaps, soon to be mandated safety systems include lane departure warning or lane keeping assistance systems that prevent drowsy or distracted drivers from inadvertently drifting into on-coming traffic; adaptive cruise control systems that detect obstacles in the road ahead; or driver monitoring systems, some of which are already required for professional drivers.

All of these systems will and do depend on the innovation that companies like Freescale are bring to electronics sensor technology all of the time.

Armando Roggio