"Tech Tuesdays: Infiniti Adds Two New Layers to its "Safety Shield" of Protection" Edmunds Daily

Tech Tuesdays: Infiniti Adds Two New Layers to its "Safety Shield" of Protection

Infiniti already offers an alphabet soup of innovative accident-prevention technologies: Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Lane Departure Prevention (LDP) and Distance Control Assist (DCA). The luxury car company recently gave Edmunds the opportunity to try out the next two layers of its "Safety Shield" concept -- Side Collision Prevention (SCP) and Back-up Collision Prevention (BCP) -- at the Nissan Technical Center North America in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Better known as NTCNA, of course.

Infiniti unveiled the two new technologies on its Essence concept at this year's Geneva Auto Show, but we got a chance to experience them firsthand in what the company calls its All-Around Collision-Free Prototype, a specially equipped FX50. While not yet scheduled to appear on production vehicles, SCP and BCP will eventually fill in a couple of gaps in Infiniti's Safety Shield and further help drivers avoid hitting other vehicles --- and pedestrians.

SCP works much like LDP, which uses a windshield-mounted camera to gauge the position of the vehicle relative to lane markers on a roadway. If the vehicle strays too close to lane markers, the LDP system issues an audible alarm and visual warnings to alert the swerving driver to get back on track and brake force is applied to the opposite wheels to gently guide the car into the center of the lane.

SCP adds to this radar sensors that detect whether something is in the vicinity of the host vehicle's blind spot. If so, separate audible and visual warnings are given and brake force is also applied, albeit slightly more aggressively, to set the vehicle straight. LDP must be turned on via a steering-wheel switch each time the engine is started and is canceled when a turn signal is activated. An Infiniti spokesperson said SCP will likely follow suit so that drivers can defeat it if they choose.

BCP is similar to the Chrysler's Cross Path Detection System and Ford Cross Traffic Alert in that it uses radar and ultrasonic sensors to warn a driver of approaching vehicles while blindly backing out of a parking spot. But when Infiniti's BCP detects that a vehicle is bearing down on the car's protruding rear end, it automatically applies the brakes for one second in addition to triggering audible and visual warnings.

Plus, the system prevents plowing over pedestrians -- in our case, an Infiniti engineer who bravely walked within inches of the FX50 while we backed up. And, as you can see from the video below, it can also keep you from taking out people pushing shopping carts around a parking lot.