Recently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) under the US Department of Transportation announced a proposal to require all passenger cars and light trucks produced and sold in the United States to be equipped with Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) systems for vehicles and pedestrians, also known as automatic braking systems. The organization believes that promoting AEB boarding is no less significant than the popularization of passive safety configurations such as seat belts and airbags.
In fact, in recent years, countries have been promoting the popularization of AEB. As early as 2016, 20 car manufacturers voluntarily made a commitment to the US federal regulatory agencies to equip all their passenger cars sold in the US with AEBs by September 1, 2022. In 2019, according to a resolution disclosed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), about 40 countries and regions including Japan and the European Union agreed to mandate the introduction of AEB for new cars from 2022, and it is currently being gradually implemented.
Although not as fast as countries like Europe and America, China is still making progress. The China New Car Assessment Program (C-NCAP), China Insurance Automotive Safety Index (C-IASI), China Intelligent Vehicle Index (i-VISTA) and other evaluation standards have specific evaluation items for AEB. The regulatory authorities have required commercial vehicles to be equipped with AEB from 2021 onwards. However, the installation standards for AEB in passenger cars have not yet been implemented. Li Xiang, CEO of Ideal Automobile, suggested last year that AEB should be standard for passenger cars, which was approved by many industry experts.
Now, US regulatory agencies have officially issued a proposal to mandate the installation of AEB, which may attract other countries to follow suit. The day when AEB becomes a global "standard" may not be far away.
01
The United States requires new cars to be equipped with AEB mandatory
As an active safety technology, AEB can monitor the driving environment ahead of the vehicle in real time through devices such as front facing cameras and millimeter wave radar, and issue warnings to the driver in case of potential collision hazards; When the driver fails to react in a timely manner or is unable to avoid a collision, the system will intervene in a timely manner, braking and decelerating the vehicle to avoid or mitigate the collision.
As early as more than a decade ago, AEB appeared in some mass-produced cars in the form of optional equipment. Initially, it was mainly used by luxury brands, but in recent years, its installation rate in economy cars has also significantly increased. In 2016, the US government reached an agreement with 20 car companies to voluntarily install AEBs on all their new passenger vehicles by September 2022. NHTSA and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) have repeatedly urged all car manufacturers to install AEB as standard on all new vehicles as soon as possible.
As of now, about 90% of new cars on sale in the United States are equipped with various forms of AEBs, which not only prevent rear end collisions but also have AEB functions for pedestrians and bicycles. However, not all vehicles are equipped with systems that meet NHTSA standards. The American Automobile Association (AAA) released a report last year stating that although some car manufacturers have equipped AEBs with excellent performance in preventing low-speed rear end collisions, they perform poorly when the vehicle is driving at normal speed.
In order to ensure that AEB can prevent or mitigate collisions at higher speeds, NHTSA has put forward higher performance requirements this time. According to regulations, all passenger cars and light trucks must be equipped with AEB and ensure that the vehicle does not collide with pedestrians at a speed of 37 mph (approximately 60 km/h). At the same time, manufacturers also need to ensure that the new car will not collide with other stationary or slow-moving vehicles at a speed of 62 mph (approximately 100 km/h). At the same time, these systems must also be able to operate well at night, including detecting pedestrians and emergency braking in the dark.
Today, we have taken an important step forward to make our roads safer for all Americans, "said US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg." Just like previous generations of life-saving innovative configurations such as seat belts and airbags, requiring passenger cars and trucks to be equipped with AEBs will significantly improve road traffic safety. ”
The NHTSA proposal is a key component of the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Road Safety Strategy, which was launched in January 2022 to reduce the rapidly increasing number of road traffic fatalities in recent years. In recent years, the death toll from traffic accidents in the United States has been continuously increasing. Data shows that nearly 43000 people died in car accidents in both 2021 and 2022 in the United States.
NHTSA points out that AEB is expected to significantly reduce collision accidents related to pedestrians and rear end collisions. If the proposal is passed, it could save at least 360 lives annually, prevent approximately 24000 injuries, and significantly reduce property damage caused by car accidents. Even if AEB cannot completely avoid collisions, it can reduce the severity of accidents by slowing down. What was originally a fatal high-speed accident may become a low-speed accident that causes minor injuries or property damage. However, it may take several more years for the regulations to take effect. NHTSA needs to listen to the opinions of car companies, safety organizations, and the public before deciding on the final version, which may take one year or more. If the proposal is adopted and successfully becomes a regulation, car companies will still have a buffer period of 3-4 years.
The American Automotive Innovation Alliance (AAI), representing the majority of car manufacturers in the US market, has stated that it is reviewing NHTSA's proposal. IIHS stated that requiring the system to avoid front and rear collisions while driving at high speeds "will improve the system performance of most new cars currently available." Currently, it is unclear which car companies in the US market have AEBs that meet NHTSA's requirements.
02
Japan, Europe and other countries and regions are promoting
In addition to the United States, multiple countries and regions such as Japan and the European Union are also promoting AEB as a standard feature. As early as 2019, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) mandated the installation of AEBs in passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, with support from approximately 40 countries and regions including Japan and the European Union. The organization stated that after installing AEB, low-speed rear end collisions of vehicles can be reduced by 38%. In order to prevent traffic accidents and mitigate their harm, the organization believes that developing international rules is an urgent task. The new regulations strive to prevent traffic accidents and reduce accident injuries against the background that new generation vehicles such as autonomous vehicle are expected to be popularized. South Korea, Russia, Australia and other countries have also approved the new regulations, but the United States, China, India and other countries have not joined. It is worth noting that, unlike the latest regulations issued by NHTSA, the above agreement targets low-speed driving below 60 kilometers per hour.
One of the reasons why Japan actively promotes AEB as a standard is the serious aging problem in Japan. Vehicle collision accidents caused by elderly drivers have become a serious social problem, which has accelerated the legislative process of AEB. According to the new regulations finalized by the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism at the end of 2019, new and updated models launched in Japan from 2021 must be equipped with AEB. In fact, before the above regulations came into effect, the penetration rate of AEBs in the Japanese new car market had already reached around 90%.
As for the European Union, as early as 2014, the European Association for New Car Assessment (E-NCAP) included AEB in its rating system. Vehicles without AEB are difficult to obtain a five-star rating. Subsequently, relevant regulations have been continuously improved in revisions, providing a comprehensive reference for AEB legislation and new car evaluation in various countries.
Taking the stricter E-NCAP 2023 version as an example, it has added AEB testing scenarios, including vehicle to vehicle intersection collision scenarios, front end collision scenarios, etc. At the same time, the test covered the speed range of 10-80km/h and also simulated various states of the preceding vehicle (stationary, slow driving, short/long-distance emergency stop).
In contrast, the IIHS in the United States also introduced a pre collision system evaluation system in 2014, and later stipulated that new cars must have AEB to obtain a five-star rating. However, the agency only evaluated AEB at two speeds: 12mph (about 20km/h) and 25mph (about 40km/h). From this perspective, the testing method of E-NCAP is clearly more comprehensive and objective. Of course, IIHS is also making improvements. Previously, the organization announced that it would increase the testing speed to 35-45mph (about 56-72km/h), because IIHS found that more than 90% of rear end collisions occurred at speeds above 25mph (about 40km/h) by comparing traffic accident data from the past few years. Among them, about half of the common non fatal accidents occur at 35-45mph (approximately 56-72km/h).
From a regulatory perspective, currently, the EU's mandatory installation of AEBs is still focused on the commercial vehicle sector. Starting from November 2015, the European Union has mandated the installation of AEB on newly produced heavy commercial vehicles. Subsequently, according to the EU regulation EU2019/2144, starting from July 6, 2022, all new vehicles entering the EU market in the MI category (including passenger cars with no more than 9 seats, including the driver's seat) and N1 category (trucks with a maximum design gross mass not exceeding 3500kg) must be equipped with a vehicle to vehicle AEB function. The AEB function for pedestrians and bicycles will be mandatory after July 7, 2024.
03
Domestic commercial vehicle standard configuration takes the lead
Similar to the European Union, China was also the first to mandate the installation of AEB on commercial vehicles. After all, traffic accidents involving operating passenger and freight vehicles usually result in greater casualties and economic losses, and AEB helps to reduce the probability of vehicle collisions, lower the risk of casualties and property damage.
In China, AEB is gradually becoming a standard configuration for commercial vehicles through laws and regulations. According to the requirements of the Ministry of Transport, starting from September 2020, trucks weighing over 18 tons and with a maximum speed greater than 90 km/h are required to be equipped with lane departure warning systems and forward collision warning systems. Starting from January 2021, road buses and tourist buses with a length greater than 11 meters are required to be equipped with AEBs; Starting from May 2021, trucks weighing 12 tons or more with a maximum speed greater than 90 km/h, tractors with a maximum speed greater than or equal to 90 km/h, and dangerous goods transport trucks weighing 12 tons or more are required to be equipped with AEBs.
So far, China has not made specific regulations for the mandatory installation of AEBs on passenger cars, and has only issued a recommended national standard - GB/T 39901-2021 "Performance Requirements and Test Methods for Automatic Emergency Braking Systems (AEBS) for Passenger Cars". This standard was released in March 2021 and implemented on October 1 of the same year, providing specific technical requirements for the basic performance, warning signals, collision testing, adjacent lane misresponse, and other aspects of AEB.
Like in Europe and the United States, before the official regulations were introduced, evaluation agencies played a role in forcing car companies to actively install active safety functions such as AEB. Domestic influential companies such as C-NCAP and C-IASI have developed detailed evaluation procedures for AEB based on the characteristics of China's road traffic. Taking C-NCAP as an example, the 2018 version of the regulations added technical requirements such as AEB function and pedestrian protection, and increased the weight of active safety. If a car is not equipped with AEB, it cannot obtain a five-star rating. It is precisely after being included in the C-NCAP collision scoring system that AEB has gradually become a hot topic in the industry in China. Afterwards, in the 2021 version of the new regulations of C-NCAP, longitudinal and nighttime pedestrian testing scenarios were added, as well as AEB testing scenarios for two wheeled vehicles, mainly considering the significant increase in shared bicycles, food delivery motorcycles, and other similar vehicles in recent years.
The C-IASI evaluation protocol also includes vehicle to vehicle, vehicle pedestrian, and vehicle rider collision scenarios, which can comprehensively evaluate the AEB performance of vehicles. In addition, the i-VISTA 2020 version has also added an intelligent security section, which mainly tests three functions including AEB. Among them, in the testing of AEB, in addition to vehicle to vehicle testing, there are also vehicle to vulnerable groups (children, cyclists) testing, and two scenarios, day and night, as well as adult or child crossing and longitudinal testing scenarios, have been added, which is more in line with the characteristics of road traffic in China.
At the market level, AEB is not unfamiliar to ordinary domestic consumers, and many car companies use AEB as a selling point to promote their products. In China, both joint venture and domestic brands have many car models equipped with AEB. It goes without saying that new cars priced at hundreds of thousands of yuan are also equipped with AEB in many models priced over 100000 yuan. However, when encouraged by evaluation agencies but not mandatory by the government, many companies consider AEB as an optional device from a cost perspective. The person in charge of Nezha Automobile told China Automotive News reporters: "Not all models come standard with AEB. Taking Nezha V as an example, AEB is included in the intelligent driving package and is an optional item. ”
For safety reasons, many industry insiders have suggested that new cars be mandated to come standard with AEB. At the China Electric Vehicle Hundred People Forum in March last year, Li Xiang, Chairman of Ideal Automobile, suggested making AEB a standard feature. Regarding this, Miao Wei, Deputy Director of the Economic Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, expressed his agreement and said: "AEB can significantly reduce the possibility of collisions caused by drivers' carelessness in road traffic, and the number of deaths and casualties in road traffic accidents will be greatly reduced. This technology is already mature, and the cost is not very high. AEB should be made a mandatory component. ”
04
The popularity rate of passenger cars still needs to be improved
In fact, mainstream global car manufacturers have launched their own pre collision safety systems, but each company has different names, effects, and technical details, such as Toyota's PCS pre collision safety system, Mercedes Benz's Pre safe safety system, Volkswagen's Front Assist front safety assistance system, Volvo's City Safety city safety system, Subaru's Eye Sight driving assistance system, etc. With the development of the automotive industry, intelligent assisted driving configuration has become one of the hotspots and focuses of competition among major car companies, and AEB, as one of the basic functions of assisted driving, is usually packaged together with other functions for consumers to choose from.
So, what is the AEB installation rate in the domestic passenger car market? According to monitoring data from the High Tech Intelligent Automotive Research Institute, the pre installed AEB installation rate of passenger cars in the Chinese market (excluding imports and exports) in 2021 was 38.04%, an increase of about 7 percentage points compared to 2020; In 2022, this proportion reached 48.84%, an increase of about 10 percentage points year-on-year. According to a report released by another institution, Zosi Automotive Research, the sales volume of AEB equipped models in the Chinese passenger car market (excluding imported models) reached 9.485 million units in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 21.4%, and the installation rate also increased from 38.5% in 2021 to 47.7%.
It can be seen that the current AEB installation rate in the domestic passenger car market is close to 50%, which is not small compared to the installation rate of about 90% in new car markets such as Japan and the United States, and still needs to be continuously improved. It is gratifying that the installation rate of AEBs in passenger cars has grown rapidly in the past two years. If five years ago, vehicles equipped with AEB were still a "niche group", but now they have become increasingly popular.
From the perspective of price distribution of vehicle models, the installation rate of AEB is positively correlated with vehicle prices, that is, the higher the vehicle price, the higher the installation rate of AEB. In the domestic passenger car market, the main models equipped with AEB are still mid to high end models, and the installation rate of joint venture brands is higher than that of domestic brands. According to data from the High Tech Intelligent Automotive Research Institute, the AEB installation rate of models priced above 350000 yuan in the domestic market has exceeded 90% by 2022; The installation rate in the range of 200000 to 350000 yuan is also above 70%; The installation rate in the range of 150000 to 200000 yuan is close to 60%; The equipment installation rate in the range of 100000 to 150000 yuan is lower than the average, at 34.95%; The installation rate of models under 100000 yuan is only 2.27%.
It is obvious that in the process of AEB moving towards standard configuration, cost issues are still lagging behind, and models with relatively higher prices have higher AEB installation rates. In addition, it is worth noting that new forces in car manufacturing are generally more active in intelligent configuration. According to inquiries and investigations by reporters, popular models such as the Ideal ONE, NIO ET7, Jike 001, and Wenjie M5 are loyal fans of AEB.
The popularity of assisted driving functions, including AEB, has also brought unlimited business opportunities to suppliers. Taking Heduo Technology as an example, it launched the intelligent front facing camera HoloIFC at this year's Shanghai Auto Show, which can provide functions such as AEB and Forward Collision Warning (FCW). It has been designated as a project by Dongfeng Group and will provide L2 level assisted driving functions, including AEB, for new cars under Dongfeng Group. Regarding its performance, the person in charge of HoloIFC Technology told a reporter from China Automotive News: "During the research and development verification process with OEM customers, HoloIFC's AEB function can meet the five-star safety standards of C-NCAP 2024, E-NCAP 2023, and i-VISTA 2020, and is in line with domestic and foreign mainstream safety standards. After mass production and installation in the future, it will accompany Chinese domestic brand models to enter overseas markets. ”
From the current perspective, although China's passenger car market still has some distance to go before AEB becomes standard, with the gradual improvement of relevant technologies and regulations, it is believed that this day will not be too far away.
