Like the automatic braking system, the Lane Assistant can also prevent accidents. It warns the driver as soon as he or she is in danger of leaving the lane. Any instance of inattentiveness at the wheel entails a risk to safety. A moment of surprise can, in the worst cases, already be too long for the driver to react properly and avoid an accident. This system, which was developed by the researchers at DaimlerChrysler, has been available in Europe since 2000.
Plans also call for the system to be marketed in North America.
A small camera mounted behind the windshield photographs the road directly in front of the truck. A high-performance computer evaluates the images. Using the lane markings as points of reference, it analyses the position of the vehicle within the lane. It then processes this information and the speed to continually calculate whether the vehicle is in danger of leaving the lane. If the system calculates a result below a critical value, the warning is activated.