BREAKING: TOKYO, JAPAN. A HINO BUS will be the first commercial vehicle in the world to have an emergency braking response capability – in the event of driver heart attack or sudden driving impairment – installed as standard, activated by either the driver, tour guide or even an actual bus passenger, the company stated today.
Known as the Driver Abnormality Response System (EDSS: Emergency Driving Stop System), Hino Motors Japan will install and release it on a Hino Selega “sight-seeing” tour bus this summer in Japan [ June – August, 2018].
According to a company spokesperson, ABC magazine can report that the EDSS system: “supports vehicle stops when abnormalities such as sudden illness [occur]”.
Hino says it is working on safety technology development based on a policy of “actively contributing to zero traffic accident casualties”.
In recent years, accidents caused by a sudden change in the health condition of the driver have occurred, the company says, and thus it has “promoted the development of this countermeasure technology.”
HOW IT WORKS
As Hino explains, “In an accident caused by a sudden illness of a driver or the like, the vehicle may continue travelling while losing control – secondary damage, such as deviation to the opposite lane, or collision with a guardrail or the like, may occur.”
“In order to minimise the damage, it is effective to stop the vehicle as soon as possible after the occurrence of the abnormality,” it continued.
“From [a] customers’ idea [viewpoint] … technology that can contribute to prevention of accidents should be issued to the world as a social responsibility of commercial vehicle manufacturers, [and] many customers are requesting the function of ‘urgently stopping the vehicle’ in case of emergency.
“We have put into practical use a driver abnormality response system … that stops the vehicle with an emergency brake switch.”
“In the future we will continue to develop for function improvement and work to pursue further safety.”
The system is said to be compliant with the technical guidelines formulated by the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
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PRESSING BUTTONS
In incidents when the driver is suddenly incapacitated for whatever reason, the driver themselves, or someone nearby like the tour operator, pushes the emergency brake switch near the driver’s seat to gradually bring the vehicle to a halt, it’s explained.
The beauty of this system is that if either of those two occupants cannot press the button, Hino’s system gives the passengers – with switches located at the top of the front row [of seats] on the left and right sides – the ability to take safety matters into their own hands and activate slow controlled braking via a button press.
That is, the passenger pushes the switch installed above their seat and the bus will start to gradually slow to a stop. At this time, an emergency buzzer sounds in the car, the red lights built into the switch light up, a bright red “flasher flashes”, and the passenger is informed that the emergency stop is underway.
While this is occurring, to ensure surrounding people and vehicles outside are aware of the forced braking manoeuver, the system sounds the horn, flashes the stop lights and the hazard lamps, all to inform of the “abnormality”.
Hino Motors Corporation is headquartered in Hino City, Tokyo, Japan.