Ford Entering Adaptive Cruise Control Arena in U.S
IVsource.net
13 November 2002

Delphi Corporation has announced that Ford Motor Company will offer their enhanced Forewarn® adaptive cruise control (ACC) with Forward Alert (FA) technology to 2003 Jaguar XKR models launching this October in the U.S, Canadian and Mexican markets. This marks the debut of adaptive cruise control in the U.S. for Jaguar.

Delphi Corporation has announced that Ford Motor Company will offer their enhanced Forewarn® adaptive cruise control (ACC) with Forward Alert (FA) technology to 2003 Jaguar XKR models launching this October in the U.S, Canadian and Mexican markets. This marks the debut of adaptive cruise control in the U.S. for Jaguar.

ACC became available from Mercedes Benz and Lexus (Toyota) in 2000, and from Infiniti (Nissan) in 2001. General Motors is also introducing ACC for the 2003 model year on their Cadillac XLR.

Ford initially introduced ACC on Jaguar vehicles in Europe. The system uses a high-performance, mechanically scanning, long-range radar sensor to help the driver detect objects up to 150 meters in the vehicles forward path. Delphi says their ACC is highly reliable, making more individual measurements on each horizontal radar scan than other systems. If the lane ahead is clear, the system will maintain the cruising speed set by the driver. When slower traffic is detected, the system will maintain a driver-selected headway (adjustable between 1.0 and 2.2 seconds) using throttle control and limited braking. The system also can detect if another vehicle crosses into the path from an adjacent lane and respond appropriately.

"Delphi's extensive vehicle electronics experience and engineering resources are key to our ability to develop and bring to market technologies that offer a high level of driver convenience and enhanced safety," said Jeff Owens, president of Delphi Delco Electronics Systems. "Adaptive cruise control is the perfect example of such a technology and we are pleased to collaborate with Ford and Jaguar to bring the convenient option of Forewarn ACC to Jaguar owners and now to U.S, Canadian and Mexican consumers."

Forward Alert - First Forward Safety Warning System for U.S. Cars
New to Delphi's adaptive cruise control technology is a Forward Alert system. When the driver has enabled the FA system (regardless of whether ACC is on or engaged), audible and visual alerts will be provided to the driver that braking is required due to slower-moving vehicles ahead. Drivers can adjust system sensitivity to adapt alert levels to their preferred driving style and prevent nuisance alerts. It is important to note that the FA system will not warn of stopped vehicles or fixed objects ahead and should not be expected to prevent collisions in these situations.

Where standard cruise control provides added convenience for interstate highway travel, ACC gives similar levels of convenience on more congested roads and traffic conditions. The system includes driver information displays that indicate the set cruising speed and driver-selectable gap. Now with FA, drivers have the additional capability of receiving automatic alerts in nearly any type of road or traffic condition that they should brake for slower-moving traffic ahead, even when they are not operating with ACC on or engaged. And, if mud, snow or other material blocks the sensor, the system will warn the driver with a message.

Benefits of Forewarn® ACC include added convenience by reducing the need to manually accelerate or decelerate with changes in traffic flow and enhanced safety by maintaining a consistent and increased average following distance. Additional benefits of FA include increased driver reaction time to reductions in traffic speeds ahead, especially when the driver may have momentarily taken his eyes away from the road.

Forward Alert is the first forward-looking safety warning system made available on production cars in the U.S. The degree to which drivers are able to understand the limitations of the system is of key interest to many in the active safety community.

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For More Information ...

... visit the Delphi Press Room at http://www.delphi.com/media or contact Milton Beach at milton.beach@delphiauto.com. 

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