BMW Emergency Stop: Step 1 Towards Real Smartcars

Jun 8 2009, 10:30am CDT | by Robert Evans

Alright, all these iPhones and netbooks and motion sensing video games are cool, but they're basically just self-amusement devices. It's about time we start taking all of this awesome new tech we've developed and use it to keep people from dying in random traffic collisions. Since the Jetsons came out, every sane human being has wanted a self-driving smartcar. Imagine how nice it would be to just jump in your car, type in the destination, and enjoy a thirty minute nap for your morning commute?

Unfortunately neither computer nor automotive technology have managed to advance to quite that point yet. But, thanks to BMW, we're closer than ever. They're in the process of developing a program that will be able to sense a medical emergency on the part of the driver, take control of the vehicle, and pilot it safely over to the shoulder of the road. BMW says that the Emergency Stop software will be able to pilot the car based on radar.

Don't get too excited yet. The Emergency Stop system was designed primarily to help seniors who fall asleep or suffer from a medical emergency while behind the wheel. We're probably still quite a few years away from computers being able to take the task of driving from us entirely. Still, this is a big first step and a really great safety feature for any seniors with the cash on hand to afford a brand new BMW..

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Robert Evans
The excitement about new smartphones, tablets and anything mobile drive Robert to unearth the latest rumors and developments in this fast moving space. He adopted 4G as soon as it become available and knows where the mobile market is going.
Robert can be contacted directly at robert@i4u.com.