Bright ideas: suppliers and automakers put on their thinking caps to develop enlightening technology for '03 vehicle - Cover Story - Honda Accord's new Touch by Voice telematics system - International Pages - Product Announcement - Statistical Data Included

Automotive Industries, Sept, 2002 by Andrea Wielgat, John Peter

It used to be that luxury car buyers had all the fun.

This year new and innovative technology continues to move further down market. It's not just the luxury vehicles that get all the toys anymore.

Take the Honda Accord's new Touch by Voice telematics system from IBM. This new technology is showing up for the first time a mid-sized family sedan, not a high-end luxury coupe.

Technology also continues to spread to compact cars in Europe. The market is highly competitive and OEMs use new technology to differentiate themselves from other vehicle makers.

Sport/utility vehicle drivers and pickup truck buyers also get their share of firsts. This high-demand segment is more and more becoming the lucky recipient of automakers' and suppliers' advances.

Here are a few supplier and automaker bright ideas for 2003. Stay tuned to future issues for more.

TRW Active Crash Retractor works before the crash.

TRW Automotive believes cars are safe and it's just the way we use them that is unsafe.

That's why the auto supplier is moving from reactive safety systems to anticipatory systems.

"The earlier you deploy the safety features the better off you'll be," says Alain Charlois, director, product planning for TRW's occupant safety systems.

One of TRW'S first steps in foreseeing crashes is its Active Crash Retractor (ACR), which debuts for '03 on the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class.

The ACR takes the slack out of the seat belt moments before a crash keeping the driver in an appropriate position, says Charlois.

Using information from the vehicle's ABS, traction control, chassis system or stability control system, the ACR tightens the seat belt using an electric brushless motor. In the event of air bag deployment, the ACR keeps the passenger further away from the airbag. If an emergency situation does not occur the ACR releases the belt.

The system can be customized to the OEM's specification allowing for the ACR to be activated in many scenarios from severe to mild.

Additionally, ACR can be used to increase occupant comfort during dangerous driving situations that may not involve any vehicle crashes. For example, if a consumer is driving through the mountains the system could tighten the belt, making the driver feel safer.

In future generations, the ACR could be used in conjunction with other occupant safety systems, says Jeffrey S. Aird, director of core and application engineering, North America, for TRW. For example, the ACR could tighten, waking a driver that has fallen asleep at the wheel.

UTILITY

GMs suppliers build next generation midgate

Built off of the extended GMC Envoy chassis, the '03 XUV features GM'S next generation mid-gate, a concept first seen on the Avalanche.

The next generation mid-gate seals the cargo area from the passenger compartment. The cargo floor is made of puncture-resistant, puncture-proof composite panels. The entire area can be hosed out with the water and dirt draining into a trough behind the rear seats. For longer cargo, the mid-gate can be folded into the passenger compartment. Rear seats are flipped and folded forward and the power-window lowers into the mid-gate by pressing a button on the dash, before the mid-gate is dropped forward.

For tall cargo a power roof panel slides forward creating an opening approximately 2- and-a-half-feet long and just under 3-feet wide. The Inalpha supplied roof is built from a single 42-inch by 38-inch composite panel. For safety the roof won't remain partially open but will revert to either fully open or fully closed and the optional detection system returns the roof to the fully open position when it comes in contact with an object.

The dual action function tailgate folds down to create a flat load floor, or swings out, 1960's station wagon style. The tailgate can be operated one of three ways--the express button on the dash, a key in the tailgate or by a button on the key fob. The rear glass can only be lowered by dash button. The glass has to be lowered to drop the tailgate, but it will swing out with the glass up, though to protect the glass, the window automatically lowers about an inch before the tailgate swings open and raises automatically when the tailgate is closed. As an added benefit with the tailgate swung open the rear bumper acts as a step up into the cargo area allowing for easy access to the roof rack.

The biggest obstacle in designing the mid-gate was in sealing the roof and the rear glass.

"With the roof coming back," explains Ted Robertson, Envoy program manager, "it's got to stop somewhere in space. The window coming up out of the tailgate has to meet the roof in that spot in space giving a good seal."

The electrical system was built and programmed by Invotronics of Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. The three electric motors (one for the roof, one for the tailgate and one for the mid-gate window) are built with all-effect sensors inside. The sensors count the pulses that the motors are firing for very precise and accurate positioning of the components. They actually "learn" where the roof meets the glass and go back to that position all of the time.