An emergency action system for use with a railcar or locomotive is described herein. The emergency action system may include a transmitter and a locomotive transceiver located within a cabin of the locomotive. The locomotive transceiver may receive a signal sent from the transmitter and may further send an emergency stop signal to a set of brakes on the locomotive to stop. The emergency stop signal may cause air to be released from the brake pipe, thereby applying the brakes and bringing the train to an immediate stop. The emergency action system enables crew members to stop a train or railcar without communication to the locomotive operator when a hazard is recognized.

A system, for use in evaluating operation of a vehicle, includes a hardware-based processing unit, and a non-transitory computer-readable storage component including various functioning modules. The modules in various embodiments include an input module that, when executed by the hardware-based processing unit, receives, from a vehicle-braking sensor, braking data indicting characteristics of a braking event at the vehicle. The system in some implementations includes an input unit receiving the braking data from the sensor and passing it to a braking-monitoring module. The braking-monitoring module, when executed by the hardware-based processing unit, determines, based on the braking data, whether the braking event is within an acceptable pre-established limit. The technology in various embodiments includes processes performed by the system and algorithms used therein.

A number of variations may include an autonomous emergency braking system including a device for automatically opening a clutch of a transmission without driver action required. A number of variations may include a method comprising providing an autonomous emergency braking system including a device for automatically opening a clutch of a transmission without driver action required, using a sensor to detect a potential collision, and activating the device when a collision is detected to open a clutch of a transmission without driver action or input.

Apparatuses, systems, and methods are provided for the utilization of vehicle control systems to cause a vehicle to take preventative action responsive to the detection of a near short term adverse driving scenario. A vehicle control system may receive information corresponding to vehicle operator data and ancillary data. Based on the received vehicle operator data and the received ancillary data, a multi-dimension risk score module may calculate risk scores associated with the received vehicle operator data and the received ancillary data. Subsequently, the vehicle control systems may cause the vehicle to perform at least one of a close call detection action and a close call detection alert to lessen the risk associated with the received vehicle operator data and the received ancillary data.

A system and method are provided and include a light source projector with a positional actuator mounted on a subject vehicle that projects a laser line on a roadway upon which the subject vehicle is traveling. A controller is in communication with a platoon vehicle traveling in front of or behind the subject vehicle in a platoon and controls the positional actuator to project the laser line on the roadway between the subject vehicle and the at least one platoon vehicle.

A vehicle includes at least one brake assembly configured to brake at least one wheel of the vehicle in response to an applied voltage. A power supply is in signal communication with the at least one brake assembly. The power supply is configured to operate in a first mode that outputs a first voltage and a second mode that outputs a second voltage greater than the first voltage. A brake control system is in signal communication with the at least one brake assembly and the power supply. The brake control system is configured to determine a driving state of the vehicle, and is configured to output a brake boost request signal to initiate the second mode of the power supply in response to detecting the driving state, wherein a braking response time of the at least one brake assembly is improved in response to applying the second voltage.

A collision avoidance device includes, for example, a collision avoidance executor, a determiner, and a collision avoidance controller. The collision avoidance executor can execute a collision avoidance function for a vehicle to avoid collision with an object to be avoided. The determiner determines, when a driver operates a steering, whether to be able to avoid the collision with the object to be avoided, based on a turning parameter related to a turning caused by the steering. The determiner determines whether to be able to avoid the collision with the object to be avoided by determining whether a lateral acceleration or a yaw rate serving as the turning parameter is equal to or greater than a first threshold. The collision avoidance controller inhibits the execution of the collision avoidance function when the lateral acceleration or the yaw rate of a vehicle is equal to or greater than the first threshold.

A method of operating a vehicle wherein the method comprises using a distance sensor to determine the distance between a part of the vehicle and an object, and implementing a speed control procedure if the distance detected by the distance sensor falls below a predetermined value, characterized in that the method is implemented only while the vehicle is in reverse gear and for a period of time immediately following disengagement of the reverse gear.

A method in which the driving behavior of a vehicle is influenced depending on surroundings data in order to support an evasive maneuver as soon as a risk of collision is detected using the data from surroundings sensors and vehicle sensors. The vehicle has an electronically regulated braking system which allows a driver-independent build-up and a modulation of the braking forces on the individual wheels of the vehicle, and a steering input by the drive is supported in the event of a detected risk of collision by a driver-independent braking intervention. A brake slip of at least one wheel of the vehicle is limited to a first slip threshold in a first phase of the evasive maneuver and to a second slip threshold in a second phase of the evasive maneuver, wherein the first slip threshold is smaller than the second slip threshold. The invention further relates to an electronic controller.

An increase in startup current supplied to a motor is suppressed at an initial stage of starting automatic braking control, while current supply to the motor is performed in a fully energized state after the automatic braking control is started. While output of the motor is increased by controlling the motor in the fully energized state so that a high braking force with high responsiveness is obtained, startup current is prevented from becoming excessive by performing high frequency control only at startup. Thus, decrease in battery voltage is minimized and thus the occurrence of malfunction is minimized in the control systems of various electrical components used in the vehicle.