WABCO Premieres Breakthrough Technology for Driver Assistance

BRUSSELS, /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- WABCO Holdings Inc., one of the world's leading providers of electronic braking, stability, suspension, and transmission automation systems for heavy duty commercial vehicles, will present the "industry's first autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system" at IAA Commercial Vehicles 2008 in Hanover, Germany.

WABCO's revolutionary system minimizes the response time for a vehicle to brake in collision imminent situations with moving or stopped vehicles because the AEB system reacts faster than the driver. It ensures the most effective deceleration and can bring the vehicle to a complete stop.

Integrating diverse data about road traffic from video and laser distance sensors, WABCO's new AEB system processes the complex information using its state-of-the-art algorithm to significantly enhance object dimensioning and anticipate imminent danger.

WABCO's breakthrough AEB technology detects, analyzes, and reacts to moving as well as stopped vehicles as the system simultaneously interfaces with braking and other systems in the truck, such as engine, transmission, and stability control, to assist the driver.

"With rear-end and junction collisions accounting for nearly half of all commercial vehicle accidents, we are passionate about breaking new ground to continuously improve vehicle and road safety," said Jean-Christophe Figueroa, WABCO Vice President, Vehicle Dynamics and Control. "In our leadership position as an integrator of commercial vehicle electronic architecture and control systems, we continue to demonstrate our ability to pioneer innovative driver assistance technologies, such as adaptive cruise control, the OnGuard collision-mitigation system, and now autonomous emergency braking."

WABCO's new AEB system will be available worldwide to truck and bus original equipment manufacturers in 2010.

In February 2008, WABCO introduced OnGuard, the "first collision-mitigation system with active braking for commercial vehicles in North America." A radar-based adaptive cruise control system, OnGuard's active braking improves vehicle safety by applying foundation brakes to alert the driver when a pre-set, forward-looking distance is compromised, optimizing reaction time.

Introduced in 2004, WABCO's adaptive cruise control monitors distances in front of a commercial vehicle and improves braking reaction time through an algorithm-enhanced system that combines a radar sensor, yaw rate sensor, and electronic control unit in a single housing.

CEO Keynote and Live Demonstration
At IAA's "Hazardous Goods Day" symposium on September 26, WABCO CEO Jacques Esculier will highlight industry developments in driver assistance systems in the convention center from 12:00 to 12:30. Following this keynote speech, a truck equipped with WABCO's new AEB system will perform emergency braking during a live demonstration from 1:30 to 2:00 pm outside the convention center.

WABCO at IAA 2008: Hall 26, Booth B14
Where: Hanover, Germany - Exhibition Center Hanover
When: September 23 through October 2
 

About WABCO
WABCO Vehicle Control Systems is one of the world's leading providers of electronic braking, stability, suspension, and transmission automation systems for heavy duty commercial vehicles. Customers include the world's leading commercial truck, trailer, and bus manufacturers. Founded in the U.S. in 1869 as Westinghouse Air Brake Company, WABCO was acquired by American Standard in 1968 and spun off in 2007. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, WABCO employs more than 7700 people in 31 countries worldwide. In 2007, WABCO's total sales were $2.4 billion.