Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are increasingly being equipped on many car models. Depending on the car, ADAS may include adaptive cruise control (ACC), front collision warning (FCW), automatic emergency braking (AEB), lane departure warning or lane keeping assist.
According to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), these technologies are designed to assist drivers in some situations, not to completely replace vehicle control and surveillance.
Having ADAS means cars can drive themselves
Some ADAS features have the ability to support speed, distance or direction control. For example, ACC can adjust speed according to the car in front, while the lane keeping assist system can act on the steering wheel to help the car maintain position in the lane.
However, these features do not mean that cars are self-driving on all routes and in all conditions. Support capability depends on the design of each system as well as operating conditions.
NHTSA recommends that drivers still focus on observing and be ready to intervene when using driving assist technologies.
Turning on ADAS can remove hands from the steering wheel
When ACC is combined with lane keeping assist, the car can automatically perform some operations on speed and direction. This can make the driver feel like the vehicle is operating on its own.
However, activating these features does not mean that drivers can take their hands off the steering wheel or stop observing the road. Some cars also have a driver monitoring system to warn when detecting signs of lack of concentration.
Euro NCAP also assesses the ability to monitor the driver during testing of driving assist technologies. Drivers still need to follow the manufacturer's user manual and maintain vehicle control.
With AEB, the car will always automatically brake when in danger.
Automatic emergency braking (AEB) has the function of detecting the risk of collision in appropriate conditions and can automatically brake to avoid or reduce the severity of some collisions.
However, AEB is not a system that can handle all situations. Operating capacity depends on speed, traffic conditions, identification capabilities and the system's limits on each car model.
Therefore, drivers should not wait for AEB to intervene or intentionally test the braking ability of the system. When a danger is detected, the driver still needs to actively brake and control the vehicle.
ADAS sensor can observe instead of drivers
Cameras, radars and sensors on cars help ADAS collect information about vehicles, lanes and obstacles. However, the sensors all have a certain range and operating limit.
Weather conditions, lighting, road conditions or traffic developments can affect the system's recognition ability. Therefore, drivers should not entrust the entire observation to ADAS.
Driving assist technologies can help reduce operations and support drivers in some situations, but do not replace the driver's concentration, judgment and responsibility.
