Toyota to roll out second generation Toyota Safety Sense active safety package from 2018

It is only when safety systems are in widespread use that they can have a real impact on the elimination of traffic accidents and fatalities. That is why in 2015 Toyota decided to launch the democratisation of advanced safety technologies in its cars with ‘Toyota Safety Sense’ (TSS). TSS a set of active safety technologies designed to help prevent or mitigate collisions across a wide range of traffic situations.

The active safety pack features a Pre-Collision System¹ (PCS) with an urban function and Lane Departure Alert (LDA), Road Sign Assist (RSA) and Automatic High Beam (AHB)². Vehicles equipped with millimetre-wave radar further benefit from Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) and PCS with a Pedestrian recognition function.

Since 2015, already more than 5 million Toyota vehicles worldwide are fitted with Toyota Safety Sense. In Europe, the fitment has already reached 92%³. In actual traffic conditions, effects of accident reduction⁴ can be seen, such as an approximately 50% reduction in rear-end collisions and approximately 90% in combination with the Intelligent Clearance Sonar (ICS).

Committed to achieving a safe mobility society, Toyota believes it is important to promote an approach, which involves people, vehicles, and the traffic environment, as well as the pursuit of “real-world safety” by learning from accidents and incorporating that knowledge into vehicle development.

Based on the company’s “Kaizen” philosophy of continuous improvement, Toyota now introduces the second generation Toyota Safety Sense. It comes with an improved system unit, an upgraded Pre-Collision System (PCS) and a new Lane Tracing Assist (LTA), while retaining the Adaptive Cruise Control, Road Sign Assist (RSA), and Automatic High Beam (AHB) functionalities.

Vehicles equipped with the second generation Toyota Safety Sense will feature a more performant single-lens camera and millimetre-wave radar, increasing the scope of hazard detection and improving the functionality. The systems are more compact to improve the ease of installation.

Between speeds of approximately 10 km to 180 km/h the upgraded Pre-Collision System (PCS) detects vehicles in front and reduces the risk of hitting them from the back. The system is also able to detect potential collisions with pedestrians (during daytime and night-time) and cyclists (during daytime), in the event of which automated braking operates at relative speeds of between 10 to 80 km/h.

The new Lane Tracing Assist (LTA) keeps the vehicle in the centre of a lane by assisting the driver in steering control when using the Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC). LTA also comes with an upgraded Lane Departure Alert (LDA), which can recognize the shoulders on straight roads without white lane markings. When the driver deviates from his lane, the system will give a warning and assist him to regain track.

The second generation Toyota Safety Sense will be progressively rolled out predominantly in Japan, North America, and Europe, commencing with new models being launched at the start of 2018.

¹ Technical name: Pre-Crash System

² Not all models

³ Based on 2017 data

⁴ Based on study conducted in Japan