Volkswagen’s ID.7, recently named overall winner of the 2024 What Car? Safety Award, relied upon HELLA electronics to achieve top spot.
The ID.7 topped a five-car shortlist, which was selected based on five-star Euro NCAP test scores. The WhatCar? judges considered safety technology, innovation and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) as part of the assessment process.
The ID.7 was commended for a range of innovative safety technologies to protect road users as well as vehicle occupants.
These days, Euro NCAP consider active crash prevention systems too as part of their safety assessments. The ID.7 features original equipment (OE) HELLA ADAS components, including 24 GHz rear radar sensors.
“These sensors are crucial for blind spot detection and lane change assist,” said Matthew Smart, Head of Electronics at HELLA UK. “The radar sensor senses and evaluates speed, angle and distance information with respect to objects up to 70 meters behind the vehicle.”
The LFMSK (linear frequency modulation shift keying) method has been used ever since the first generation of 24 GHz narrow-band sensors were introduced back in 2005 by HELLA. It enables the distance and relative speed of multiple targets to be measured with just one signal whose frequency changes over time.
The latest generation radar sensors in the ID.7 deliver accurate spatial resolution and also now integrate an additional ‘exit assistant’ safety function to detect dangerous situations at an early stage and warn vehicle occupants before they leave the vehicle.
For more information on the latest from HELLA please visit www.hella.com/techworld/uk/.