Ford's new car will force you to obey speed limit

[Shami-Amourae]

http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/24/ford-smax-speed-limit/


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3qmtEGGlOo


http://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/af76fdb47b879adc028a7619e0a6e94b/201735095/S-MAX_intelligent_speed_limiter.jpg

(http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/24/ford-smax-speed-limit/)

Much as we'd like to emulate our NASCAR heroes, breaking the speed limit often comes at a price. Ford (http://www.engadget.com/2015/03/17/ford-uses-microsoft-cloud-in-cars/) is hoping to prevent accidents and speeding tickets by introducing cars that can see what the speed limit is and preventing heavy-footed motorists from driving any faster. Ford's Intelligent Speed Limiter tech will first appear on the new Ford S-Max that's launching in Europe that could just change the way that we drive.


A camera mounted on the windshield scans the road signs on the sides of the highway and, when the vehicle enters a 20mph zone, the system reduces the top speed to match. Rather than controlling the speed with automatic braking, the car limits its own velocity by adjusting the amount of fuel being pushed to the engine.


If a burst of speed is required, however, users can either deactivate the system by pressing a button on the console or temporarily get past it with a hard press on the gas pedal. If the vehicle is coasting downhill and starts to build up speed, the car will sense its motion and sound an alarm to get you braking. It's not the only bit of new safety tech available on the new whip, either, since deep-pocketed motorists can also get pedestrian detection (http://www.engadget.com/2014/01/23/honda-pedestrian-automatic-braking-system/) and collision warnings. That frees drivers up to wonder why any car firm would call a car SMAX and think we wouldn't notice.

[madfranks]

Ford is hoping to prevent accidents and speeding tickets by introducing cars that can see what the speed limit is and preventing heavy-footed motorists from driving any faster.

Sometimes driving faster is how you avoid an accident. I used to have a small 50cc scooter, and the primary reason it was unsafe is that when you're maxed out doing 40, you have lost half of your maneuverability, as you cannot speed up to get out of the way of any potential danger around.

For example, say you are in the process of witnessing a crash in front of you, and to your left or right is the head end of another vehicle, and you have the split-second opportunity to accelerate and cut off the driver to your right/left to avoid the wreck. If the computer in your car deems your attempt to avoid the accident unsafe, well you can just crash into the car in front of you and die.