Advanced Driver Assistance Systems While we are all familiar with the term ADAS, it is likely that there are still a great many of us who are not fully across the entire suite of systems and how they operate – both individually and collectively. Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), as the name suggests, are installed to assist the driver in the safe operation of a vehicle. Of course, there are various definitions of driver assistance. The U.S. Society of Automotive Engineers provides a succinct summary highlighting the progression from driver assistance to driver automation as the systems become more complex. This is shown in Figure 1. If you’re thinking that the driver assistance system “won’t affect me” – it probably already has, as these interconnected systems are well and truly operational. The latest estimate is that ADAS is installed in more than 300 models from various manufacturers currently operating in our market. ADAS is, of course, not just a feature of luxury vehicles; it is now standard equipment on base model, everyday family cars and its use is growing daily. As a consequence, the calibration of ADAS is becoming an increasingly important factor for collision repairers and we need to understand some of the key points and our responsibilities when dealing with these systems.
1 6 CAPRICORN IGNITION NOVEMBER 2021
