What is it?
Volvo Safety Concept Car (SCC)
What's special about it?
The automaker whose name is synonymous with safety has outdone itself with this concept offering. The burly SCC features just about every safety feature you can think of.and then some. The main theme of the Volvo Safety Concept Car is "superior vision." Quite literally, this means that the vehicle is built to accommodate the driver's vision, thus improving safety by keeping her well apprised of what's going on around her vehicle.
When the driver enters the car, a sensor identifies the location of his eye; the interior configuration of the vehicle then automatically adjusts to accommodate the driver's sight lines. Seating position, floor, gas and brake pedals, steering wheel and gear level all move to within easy reach of the driver. Once the SCC has adapted to its pilot, it guarantees that she remain aware of driving conditions by providing outstanding visibility with transparent A-pillars (intricately designed with triangular glass bricks to ensure a solid structure), inward-curving B-pillars, rearward-facing cameras to detect obstacles and forward-facing cameras to keep the vehicle on course. Then there are cameras installed in the side mirrors, complete with an alarm to prevent the driver from making a lane change if another vehicle is hiding in his blind spot. Night vision is also provided thanks to an infrared light enhancer mounted just above the steering wheel.
Additional safety features include two types of four-point safety belts, and a concealed external airbag to protect pedestrians and cyclists should they collide with the vehicle. Some of the more high-tech gee-whiz features are a fingerprint sensor to personalize the remote control unit, which in turn controls the Volvo Personal Communicator (VCC), a computer which automatically adjusts the driver's seat, steering wheel, pedals, etc. Another newfangled device is a heartbeat sensor, which can detect break-ins, or animals or children who have been left inside the vehicle by mistake.
Why should you care?
If even a few of the forward-thinking concepts applied to the Volvo SCC make it into production, drivers will benefit immensely. Ideas like the four-point seatbelts and curved B-pillars make so much sense from a safety standpoint that it seems like they should have made it into production long ago. Other features, like cameras, glass-entwined A-pillars and fingerprint sensors seem a little more futuristic and expensive to implement on a large scale. Still, we'd feel incredibly secure to find ourselves on highways teeming with descendants of the Volvo Safety Concept Car. Ahh, someday.
Volvo Safety Concept Car (SCC)
What's special about it?
The automaker whose name is synonymous with safety has outdone itself with this concept offering. The burly SCC features just about every safety feature you can think of.and then some. The main theme of the Volvo Safety Concept Car is "superior vision." Quite literally, this means that the vehicle is built to accommodate the driver's vision, thus improving safety by keeping her well apprised of what's going on around her vehicle.
When the driver enters the car, a sensor identifies the location of his eye; the interior configuration of the vehicle then automatically adjusts to accommodate the driver's sight lines. Seating position, floor, gas and brake pedals, steering wheel and gear level all move to within easy reach of the driver. Once the SCC has adapted to its pilot, it guarantees that she remain aware of driving conditions by providing outstanding visibility with transparent A-pillars (intricately designed with triangular glass bricks to ensure a solid structure), inward-curving B-pillars, rearward-facing cameras to detect obstacles and forward-facing cameras to keep the vehicle on course. Then there are cameras installed in the side mirrors, complete with an alarm to prevent the driver from making a lane change if another vehicle is hiding in his blind spot. Night vision is also provided thanks to an infrared light enhancer mounted just above the steering wheel.
Additional safety features include two types of four-point safety belts, and a concealed external airbag to protect pedestrians and cyclists should they collide with the vehicle. Some of the more high-tech gee-whiz features are a fingerprint sensor to personalize the remote control unit, which in turn controls the Volvo Personal Communicator (VCC), a computer which automatically adjusts the driver's seat, steering wheel, pedals, etc. Another newfangled device is a heartbeat sensor, which can detect break-ins, or animals or children who have been left inside the vehicle by mistake.
Why should you care?
If even a few of the forward-thinking concepts applied to the Volvo SCC make it into production, drivers will benefit immensely. Ideas like the four-point seatbelts and curved B-pillars make so much sense from a safety standpoint that it seems like they should have made it into production long ago. Other features, like cameras, glass-entwined A-pillars and fingerprint sensors seem a little more futuristic and expensive to implement on a large scale. Still, we'd feel incredibly secure to find ourselves on highways teeming with descendants of the Volvo Safety Concept Car. Ahh, someday.
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