Intelligent Safety with ContiGuard

APIA is now ContiGuard: A system network to protect people in road traffic

Frankfurt, September 10, 2007. Continental's Automotive Systems division is to present its new intelligent ContiGuard® system at this year's Frankfurt International Motor Show (IAA). ContiGuard® is a vehicle safety system that networks all components of active and passive safety systems and also integrates environmental sensors and telematics functions. It took several years of intensive development work under the project name "APIA" (Active Passive Integration Approach) to prepare this system for production readiness. "APIA has now become ContiGuard®. We chose this brand name because it clearly expresses the value of this technology for the automotive world. ContiGuard® is our contribution to providing the best possible protection for people in road traffic", emphasized Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann, chairman of the board of directors of Continental Automotive Systems and member of the management board of Continental AG, explaining the significance of this ground-breaking system.

Vision Zero: An ambitious objective of road traffic without accidental death
ContiGuard® is a significant step en route to Vision Zero. Vision Zero is a traffic safety philosophy with a target of zero for deaths or serious injuries as a result of traffic accidents. Intelligent vehicles can help prevent accidents and therefore reduce the number of injuries to passengers and other road users to a minimum. To create ContiGuard®, Continental AG's Automotive Systems division drew on its expertise in a number of areas of active and passive safety to develop an integrated system incorporating elements such as brakes, chassis components, ABS, ESC, environmental sensors (radar and camera systems) and telematics.

At the heart of ContiGuard® is a risk calculator in the vehicle which determines the probability of an accident in any given traffic situation and, based on this information, initiates the necessary action to avoid an accident completely.

If this is not possible, the system attempts to at least keep the consequences of the accident to a minimum. The brakes are prefilled, the brake assist is prepared for an emergency brake, the seatbelts are tensioned, windows and sliding sunroof are closed and even the airbags are "prewarned" to control their triggering as necessary.

Excellent potential for the future thanks to continuous development
Many of the advantages of ContiGuard® can already be used in cars. These include shorter braking distances, comprehensive protection against injuries to passengers and pedestrians and efficient accident prevention or at least reduction of the accident severity. "ContiGuard® has been designed with the intention of undergoing continuous development in the future, giving it excellent potential for the future", according to Dr. Neumann. Cameras and other sensors monitor the traffic situation around the vehicle and warn of obstacles or unintentional lane departures. A combination of camera sensors and distance sensors enables a better evaluation of the traffic situation. Emergency braking can be initiated to avoid stationary objects such as the end of a traffic jam. The monitoring of oncoming traffic at night permits optimized light control. In the future, image processing will play an ever increasing role, as will communication between vehicles or with a traffic control center: "The integration of functions from our rapidly growing telematics business opens up fantastic opportunities for ContiGuard®“, said Dr. Neumann. For example, information about risks can be passed on to other road users within a 500 meter radius. Studies show that the market for safety systems will increase considerably in the coming years (Studies of Strategy Analytics, 2007). The number of new cars with driver assistance systems purchased worldwide has increased from approximately eleven million to 63 million. The size of the market for anti-collision or lane departure systems alone will increase from the current figure of around €100 million to approximately €2 billion.

The Continental Corporation is a leading automotive supplier of brake systems, chassis components, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers. In 2006 the corporation realized sales of EUR14.9 billion. At present it has a worldwide workforce of around 89,000.

As a worldwide leading technology and systems partner to the automotive industry, the Automotive Systems Division of Continental AG integrates extensive know-how and uncompromising quality in the fields of active and passive driving safety, embedded telematics and hands-free communication systems, powertrain and comfort. In 2006 the Division achieved sales of approx. Euro 6 billion with a workforce of more than 30,000. Continental Automotive Systems develops and produces electronic and hydraulic brake, stability and chassis control systems, electronic air suspension systems, sensors, engine management and transmission control systems, hybrid drives, cooling fan modules, body and security electronics and also is the industry leader of embedded telematics and communication systems in vehicles.

Source: Continental

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