Which ADAS Features Are Most Likely to Lower Premiums and Increase Public Safety?
In the near future, we could see fewer traffic jams, lowered emissions, and better overall road safety. But these benefits won’t necessarily come from any new laws or regulations. Instead, these dramatic changes might come from our own automotive industries, and the exciting new technologies being developed by the best minds in the field. ADAS functions have the power to transform the way we drive and could influence our entire transportation system for decades to come.
As we see more advances in ADAS features, including advanced sensor technology, real-time traffic updates, and improved mechanical diagnostics, our roads will become safer. This, in turn, will lead to a number of economic and social benefits. In this sense, the automotive industry might just change the world all over again.
ADAS Improves Road Safety
The number one goal for anyone in our industry is road safety, and ADAS is already revolutionizing the way we think about this important issue. ADAS uses vision sensors, radar, and ultrasound to monitor other vehicles, their speeds, pedestrians, stationary objects, and sudden changes in road quality (such as ice, rain, or gravel).
When it comes to road safety, every second counts, which is why it’s so important to build this full safety system from the beginning. In many instances, these ADAS features catch and resolve potential safety threats before the driver is aware of them. As our coding becomes even more efficient, and blisteringly fast 5G speeds come into play, our industry could even make traffic accidents a thing of the past.
5G will help reduce traffic
Better Safety Means Less Traffic
Our industry is working on eliminating car accidents, but as a result, we might also eliminate traffic for good. Accidents are one of the leading causes of traffic congestion; just one fender bender could hold up miles of highway hours after the incident takes place. But traffic is also the result of “invisible accidents.” These are near-misses, or can even be the result of a driver braking too hard through a curve. No human being can drive perfectly 100 percent of the time, and these small, seemingly insignificant driving mistakes add up over time. As our cars become more in-tune with the world around them through our ADAS features, we could take human error out of the equation entirely. Additionally, vehicle-to-vehicle communications will play a greater role in traffic navigation. As vehicles communicate with one another, they will have the power to adjust speed or change routes in order to clear a traffic jam entirely.
ADAS features are better than human judgment because they constantly scan the road and correct the driver’s inputs. A distracted driver might fail to notice brake lights up ahead, but an ADAS-equipped vehicle will notice and slow down in advance. Last year, Tesla’s autopilot software prevented this exact type of accident, braking for its driver within milliseconds. Its response time was far quicker than the average human eye could catch. In the very near future, we could see our cars surpass the response times of even the most talented human drivers.
Which to insure, the driver or the manufacturer?
Your Insurance Premiums Could Decrease
Our industry is about to have a major impact on insurance premiums for car owners -- in fact, we might make individual insurance plans obsolete. Insurance companies decide on a premium price based on the car’s safety features and the driver’s accident history and overall demographic risk (such as how long they’ve had a driver’s license). With new advances in ADAS features, the driver’s capability will become less of a safety factor. ADAS systems are capable of overriding driver commands in the interest of safety, lowering the risk of accidents. That means that our customers will pay less every year to own their cars.
Additionally, insurance companies can see detailed diagnostic reports in the event of an accident to determine who or what, exactly, was at fault. Because insurance companies are taking less of a risk, and there’s greater safety accountability, premiums will likely go down for individuals and car manufacturers over the next few decades. Experts still aren’t sure whether insurance companies will insure the driver or the manufacturer in the case of truly autonomous vehicles, but either way, increased safety will result in lower insurance costs. After all, if driving becomes a virtually accident-free activity, then who needs an extensive insurance plan?
In the automotive industry, we’re changing the entire social structure around car culture and transportation. As more car manufacturers use compilers like TASKING to build their ADAS code, we’ll see changes in the way that insurance companies approach coverage, as well as how efficiently our cars move from point A to point B, all of which will make driving a more pleasant, and safe, experience.
