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Drivaware announces LaneFX - The First Active Blind Spot Exposure System
Ann Arbor, Mich., June 5, 2006 - Drivaware® Inc. today announced the production release and immediate
availability of its debut driver awareness product: LaneFX™. LaneFX® is an innovative automotive product that transforms a vehicle's power side mirrors into an on-demand Active Blind Spot
Exposure System.
Whenever a turn signal is activated, or at the press of a button, LaneFX® moves the corresponding power mirror outward to sweep and expose the vehicle's blind spot. It pauses long enough for
the driver to scan for any objects that may be lurking in the blind spot zone. Then, it reliably returns the power side mirror back to its original, driver-set position.
LaneFX™'s Patent Pending technology is designed from the ground up to be entirely universal. LaneFX® works with any vehicle equipped with power mirrors, new or pre-owned, domestic or import,
including the most ECU-intensive and multiplexed vehicles on the market today. LaneFX® is packed with driver awareness features and
is highly-customizable to the driver's preferences. Drivers can personalize how far each mirror expands, how long it pauses, and how fast it should move altogether. All customizations can be
made separately to the driver-side and passenger-side power mirrors.
Khaled Malhas, Drivaware Founder & President said: "According to NHTSA, 1 out of 25 collisions on America's highways today is due to
improper lane changes/merges. Further, J.D.
Power & Associates has reported that blind spot systems were the second-most requested automotive technology by consumers in 2005. We recognized that the driver awareness
/ lane change segment is gaining significant momentum. As a result, we designed LaneFX® as a sensor-less blind spot exposure system that is truly universal and that we can drive through multiple
channels including: auto
dealers, mobile
electronics / aftermarket retailers, as well as the OEM and tier-1 supplier channel."
"We're always looking for added revenue opportunities from a every vehicle sale." says Jeff Scott, Principal and General Manager, Dick
Scott Automotive Group based in metro Detroit, Mich.,
"it's always challenging to introduce aftermarket products after a customer has decided on a vehicle. We signed on with the LaneFX® Pilot Dealer Program because I was impressed with how simply
the product can be demonstrated to vehicle buyers and how quickly our customers see value in its impact on their daily commute."
"We've all been taught to turn our heads away from the traffic ahead to check our blind spot. During an average blind spot check, a vehicle travels
more than half of a football field, unattended!"
adds Khaled Malhas, "With LaneFX™, we allow drivers to stay focused on the road ahead while showing the contents of their blind spot zone using a comfortable, familiar interface: The vehicle's
side mirror."
In recently-announced OEM blind spot detection systems (such as ValeoRaytheon Systems' LaneVueT and Volvo's
BLIST systems), a computer and a sensor make the critical decision on whether an
object is present in the blind spot zone. Further, such systems report these results through an interface that is entirely new to the driver. In contrast, LaneFX® is a blind spot exposure system,
not a detector. LaneFX® simply exposes the contents of the blind spot zone to drivers allowing them to make their own informed driving decisions. By using the vehicle's power side mirror, drivers
use a familiar interface that has no learning curve as it is already associated with the act of changing lanes.
LaneFX® is available now through select auto dealers, aftermarket
retailers and directly through LaneFX.com. The current production release of the LaneFX® product
line features a number of Patent Pending innovations, including:
1. Mirror Speed Boost: safely accelerates power mirror motor speeds up to 200% of OEM speed for
maximum responsiveness,
2. Turn Signal Link: with "Normal" and "Sticky" turn signal modes to suit any driving style,
3. Merge Mode: holds a mirror outward for as long as the driver needs to merge into traffic,
4. Intelligent Installs Technology: LaneFX® can self-learn the electrical configuration of the host vehicle with no need for complex programming,
5. ParkFX - Park Assist & Curb Exposure System: tilts one or both side mirrors downwards
when the vehicle is engaged in reverse, and
6. "Mirror-in-Motion" LED indicators.
Drivaware Inc. was founded in 2004 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Drivaware's mission is to produce safe, innovative automotive technologies that enhance drivers' focus and
alleviate common anxieties associated with driving a motor vehicle. In addition to LaneFX® and ParkFX, Drivaware's debut product line includes: LaneXRT (featuring eXtended Reflection: The first
electrochromatic blind spot exposure system for OEM application), and BrakeFX, the first emergency braking awareness system.
Media Contacts:
Kimberly Simpson
Drivaware Inc.
+1.734.649.3949
kimberly.simpson@drivaware.com
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ParkFX for Your SUV - Prevent a Tragedy
At least once a week a child in America is run over, typically in backup (reversing) accidents
Are you extra aware and alert when you're in the vicinity of a sport-utility vehicle, van or a pickup truck that's backing up? Are you especially watchful for children when you're behind the wheel
of a tall-riding vehicle—be it a van, truck or SUV—and you're backing it up?
You should be. According to Consumer Reports, the blind spot behind a tall vehicle such as a Chevrolet
Avalanche truck can extend as much as 51 feet in the case of a small-stature driver about 5 feet 1 inches tall. Even for an average-sized driver, 5 feet 8 inches tall, the blind spot
can extend nearly 30 feet behind the Avalanche, according to the consumer advice publication.
"No one is telling people there's a bigger blind spot in these vehicles," said Janette Fennell, founder and president of the child safety advocacy group Kids
and Cars.
Pointing out her statistics showing at least one child a week in the United States is killed in a "backover" incident, Fennell urges that some kind of "backover warning and
prevention device" be made mandatory on all vehicles. |
Track Your Buddies on the Highway With New Gadget
TomTom's portable car navigator systems
have a new feature called TomTom Buddies. Stuff magazine reports that the new friend tracking system allows people
to not only send messages back and forth but keep track of where their friends are located.
Called TomTom Buddies, the feature lets you track your mates wherever you go – and in return, they get to track you too.
All you do is invite other TomTom users -- you'll have to shun your Garmin and Navman chums - to be your authorized 'buddy'. The idea is that the Buddies service will be like an exclusive club
through which you can send each other text messages and locations you think are interesting.
If you feel like being a loner for a bit you can select the privacy option which lets you hide your location. Plus, if any of your Buddies keep sending you many Points of Interest -- dodgy McDonald
drive-ins, for example -- you can delete them.
It could be a very useful system for driving vacations involving more than one vehicle. Carpooling parents and corporations with fleets of vehicles might also find this type of service useful. |
ParkFX is the 360-Degree Backup Solution That's Less Costly Than Backup Sensors, Park Assist and Rearview Cameras
Deaths increase. Ninety-one children were killed in 2003 by drivers who didn’t see them while backing up, according to Kids and Cars ( www.kidsandcars.org ),
a nonprofit organization working to improve child safety around vehicles. Those deaths represented a 57 percent increase from 2002. During the first six months of 2004, more than 40 deaths have
been attributed to backover accidents, many involving vehicles with large blind spots.
Kids and Cars compiles these statistics; the federal government does not track such incidents. Janette Fennell, president of the organization, believes that backover accidents are underreported
and that the actual number of children killed or injured is much higher.
Blind spots grow with vehicle size. A likely reason for the increase in injuries is that minivans, pickups, and SUVs account for more than half of all vehicles sold. Many
have large rear-view blind spots.
Last year, Consumer Reports began measuring the blind spot of each vehicle we test, checking the distance for short drivers (5 feet 1 inch tall) and
for those of average height (5 feet 8 inches tall). The biggest blind spot: 51 feet for a short driver in a Chevrolet Avalanche pickup. But even small sedans can have blind spots of more than 40
feet. We regularly update vehicle blind-spot information, which is available on this site free of charge in The
problem of blind spots.
Systems other than ParkFX combine a camera with sensors, so we tested each system independently; it is listed with camera systems in the Ratings.
All the systems we tested are potentially useful. They’re a good complement to looking around the vehicle before entering, and checking the rear window and rear-view mirror just before and
while moving in reverse. |
Basic Auto Safety Facts
Plus the Economic Benefits of the LaneFX Blind Spot Exposure System
- According to the US government's Department of Transportation, 1 out of 25 collisions on America's highways is due to improper
lane change / lane merge. That's 630,000 accidents annually and almost 2% of which are fatal. The estimated annual insurance cost of these collisions $2.3B not accounting for economic
loss. There are no specific statistics on whether these numbers improve by use of conventional convex blind spot mirrors or even
by the driver setting the side mirrors wide.
- Second, consider the driver awareness benefit. By eliminating the average of 2 seconds of a complete head turn / blind spot check, LaneFX can afford you over 205ft of advance emergency
stopping/maneuvering distance. This could be a life-saving or accident avoidance distance.
- Thirdly, let's approach this from a competitive landscape: The blind spot detection segment has just recently begun heating up
at the OEM and teir-1supplier level. University of Michigan's Center for Automotive Research (CAR) study of emerging technologies, automotive
executives from around the world have predestined a 10% market penetration of blind spot detection systems by MY06. So far this figure has been lagging a bit, but there is evidence of momentum
building up in this area. Volvo has recently announced their blind spot detection system called BLIS and Audi has launch its Lane Assists
passive system on its brand new Q7 SUV. As matter of fact, Volvo's VP of marketing in the BLIS systems' media preview indicated that that "blind
spot problem solution is the number of asked for feature by Volvo owners." Volvo in this detection system chose to use pattern/image recognition technology as their chosen horse for
this race. Raytheon and Valeo-Sylvania, two heavy hitters in the teir-1 supplier arena have joined forces to develop a sonar-based detection system under contract with one auto OEM. In both instances
Volvo and other system are passive detection systems. Here's what's public from Volvo's own press release: "Because the system is camera based, it not work in the rain, snow, fog, or at
night." When Automotive Week and Auto Blog test drove the BLIS system,
they encountered a disproportionate number of false positives when driving by a row of parked cars or in the left-most lane on the highway against a concrete divider wall." K.
Malhas, inventor of LaneFX expressed his opinion on this design approach as follows: "It's difficult for to understand why the one automotive manufacturer that has coined its existence
on occupant safety would release a system that does not appear to have been well-though out." But it actually gets worse from there, estimated price for the system is $1,200 that's
over 800% the suggested retail price of a complete LaneFX package and, according to Volvo if the its alert mechanism - a small orange light
on the inside of the A-pillar - becomes "too annoying" to the driver, the driver has a switch to turn it off! Unbelievable!
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If You're Looking for a Blind Spot Mirror for Your Car, Consider the Safer Solution.
LaneFX is not some speeding auto gadget that you'll never see again. Try it! Even with dual blind spot mirrors, you'll still have a distorted rear view LaneFX is being used by drivers everywhere:
Gear heads and mobile electronics enthusiasts. Women drivers in large minivans and SUVs. Elderly / senior drivers (check out the current LaneFX discount for all AARP members, and all drivers who
commute over 18,000 miles per year. |
Double Lane Change Increases SUV Rollover Risk
Drivaware reports on a new double lane-change test that is designed to stimulate an emergency maneuver to determine SUV handling. The test is important because the more controllable and secure
a vehicle is when pushed to its handling limits the better chance the SUV occupants will avoid an accident. In situations where an obstacle is in the way, due to the compromising nature of SUVs
in general, steering around it can cause the vehicle to go out of control and result in an SUV rollover. Double lane-change SUV rollovers are more common than passenger cars because of the higher
center of gravity that makes SUVs more prone to rollover, especially if swerving abruptly.
The aspect of SUV safety has most often focused on risk of rollover. The National Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has said the rate of SUV rollover
is two to three times greater than a passenger car. Height of a SUV makes the vehicle more top heavy than one that sits lower, which is why consumers interested in purchasing a SUV are advised
to choose one lower to the ground if not needing a vehicle with high ground clearance.
Accident avoidance is an important aspect of vehicle safety and the ability to sharply swerve to avoid hitting an object or a person. In a SUV, the sudden cornering forces or double lane-change
can cause the SUV to tip onto two wheels and cause it to rollover. Especially after the Ford/Firestone SUV rollovers in 2000 left hundreds dead and even more injured, focus on SUV safety, like
double lane-change SUV rollover risk, greater.
When shopping for an SUV, check for the availability of a blind spot exposure system, such as LaneFX. In addition to rollover resistance technology and such a wide range
of vehicle options, becoming informed consumers can reduce safety risks. |
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