Pedestrian Detection Systems Don’t Work Well, AAA Finds
Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
Not only is the problem of cars killing pedestrians not going away, but the annual death toll over the last decade has actually increased by 35%. The proliferation of cars with automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems that detect pedestrians is therefore a good thing, right?
According to a study by the American Automobile Association, maybe we shouldn't count on AEB. The association has just tested the pedestrian-detection behavior of four popular mid-sized model-year 2019 sedans-a Chevrolet Malibu, Honda Accord, Tesla Model 3, and Toyota Camry-in a variety of different scenarios. Unfortunately, the results are not promising, particularly when it comes to anything but the least challenging scenarios.
[...] The testing was all carried out on dry asphalt in a testing area marked out as a four-lane highway with a solid white line dividing the two middle lanes. For one other test, one of the speedway's surface streets was appropriated: a right turn with a 57-foot (17.3m)-radius curve. Different tests involved adult or child pedestrian targets moving at 3.1mph (5km/h), from left to right across the path of the test vehicle. For each test, the longitudinal distance and the time-to-collision was recorded when each vehicle gave a visual alert that a collision was imminent, as well as once the vehicle began to automatically brake. Impact speed or separation distance were recorded, depending upon the outcome of the test.
Unfortunately, the results of the tests were very much a mixed bag.
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