Mercedes Benz Crosswind Assist:
Mercedes Benz developed a driver assistance system which is the Crosswind Assist. It avoids the loss of control over the vehicle and resulting drifting because of the sudden gust of wind.
The need for Crosswind Assist:
Generally, you will observe that the vehicles traveling at a high speed are very sensitive to crosswind. Because of this, there are chances that the driver may lose control over the vehicle. You will often experience this more commonly when the vehicle travels on a narrow bridge or when a bigger vehicle like a truck overtakes a smaller vehicle.
In such a situation, the vehicle may drift out of its lane to the large wind pressure. Drifting from the lane naturally increases the chances of accidents. Thus, this system avoids such risky situations.
The working principle of Crosswind Assist:
The working of this system is based on a simple principle that the action or effect of any undesirable force could be minimized by applying a counter force i.e. a force acting in the opposite direction to it.
Similarly, Crosswind-assist applies resisting force by intelligently braking the wheels on the side facing the wind. Thus undesirable yaw motion of the vehicle is avoided and the vehicle doesn’t drift out of the lane. To perform this task, it uses the hardware of the Electronic Stability Program.
The most advanced form of this system has the capability to alter the damping rate of the suspension sturts. Hence it can control the vehicle more accurately.
Limitations:
This system works more effectively when the direction of the wind is perpendicular to the vehicle body. For the gust of the wind moving in a random direction, the corrective braking applied by the system may not be cent- percent accurate.
Find some more information about crosswind-assist here.
Watch the Crosswind-Assist in action here:
Read more: What is Collision Prevention Assist?>>
