How can an automotive company predict a driver’s behavior? And how can they make the car itself help to prevent driving dangers? The answer for Ford is through their VIRtual Test Track EXperiment simulator, as known as VIRTTEX.
A spherical dome mounted on a hydraulic system, VIRTTEX was recently updated to improve its 360-dgree field of view and high-resolution, digitally projected imaging. Ford developers use this virtual simulator to see how drivers react to other cars, pedestrians, and stationary objects alongside the road.
This kind of information is then used to develop in-car systems that will help prevent collisions and other automotive dangers. This is how Ford’s Lane Keeping and Collision Warning systems were developed.
Ford hopes that VIRTTEX’s updated projectors will help them to make even more improvements to their vehicles in the future. With such state of the art technology, there is no telling what they will come up with next.
