News: Honda has launched a riposte to Google's driverless cars with a new saloon that incorporates automated collision prevention technologies and can connect with other road users (+ movie).
Honda's 2015 Acura TLX saloon is designed to automatically merge, exit and change lanes on a motorway, which is being shown in a live traffic scenario on an eight-mile motorway loop in the downtown Detroit area.
The demo will take place for the first time in the US at this week's ITS World Congress.
Offering a mid-way point between fully manual cars and Google's completely driverless vehicles, currently being trialled in California, Honda's saloon has a mixture of automated responses to detect potential collisions and uses connected technology to interact with other road users.
Like the Google car, the Acura TLX uses cameras and radar systems to detect road infrastructure and other vehicles, paired with automatic steering and braking to safely navigate busy highway intersections.
"The creation and deployment of advanced, intelligent transportation systems represent the new frontier in the effort to one day eliminate traffic collisions, injuries and fatalities," said Frank Paluch, president of Honda's American research and development.
"We will demonstrate our vision for realising Honda's dream of a collision-free society by showcasing our continued technological innovations in active safety, connected and automated vehicle technology."
Honda is also highlighting advancements in vehicle-to-bicycle and vehicle-to-pedestrian safety features using connected devices.
Short-range communications between vehicles and the smartphones of cyclists and pedestrians will warn both parties of a potential collision threat.
The car will brake automatically if a collision is imminent. The technology will also work with motorcycles.
Drivers and cyclists or pedestrians will be able to send messages to each other using the communications software.
Finally, a "virtual tow" system will allow drivers in distress to alert surrounding vehicles.
The two cars will link up allowing the trailing vehicle to automatically follow the driving cues of the leader, so the driver and car can be safely delivered to a destination such as a hospital.
The future of driving is the subject of the Dezeen and MINI Frontiers exhibition, taking place at the designjunction trade event during next week's London Design Festival.
Opening from 17 to 21 September, the exhibition will showcase six proposals for transport by emerging designers.
These include cars made from biological materials that would mutate, personalised driving avatars in the form of dashboard bobble heads, and augmented reality road markings and signage.
