Toyota’s connected Cabin Awareness aims to prevent hot-car fatalities
Toyota has revealed a groundbreaking new idea that could prevent heatstroke deaths by helping ensure no pets or young children are left behind inside a vehicle.
The Cabin Awareness concept uses millimeter-wave radar to detect movement, and then connectivity to notify the owner in a scenario where occupants remain in a car.
And it is currently being tested in a real-world trial by Toyota’s partner May Mobility. The autonomous vehicle company is assessing the tech in its fleet of Toyota Sienna AutonoMaaS minivans at its headquarters in Michigan and will soon begin public testing in Arlington, Texas, and Ann Arbor, Michigan, with more locations added later this year.
Toyota’s Connected North America innovation center in Texas has teamed up with Israel-based Vayyar Imaging on the concept. Vayyar’s single millimeter-wave, high-resolution 4D imaging radar – which is mounted out of sight above a vehicle’s headliner – can detect people and some pets inside the vehicle, even if they are asleep or covered by a blanket, and not visible to a passerby.
According to Toyota, the radar can sense “micro-movements,” such as respiration and heartbeat, in all three rows of the Sienna, the cargo area and the footwell. Judging from the size, posture and position of the occupant, the system is then able to classify them as an adult, child or pet.
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