Hyundai prepares new life saving airbag tech

This situation occurs in up to one-in-three accidents on the road but we are left potentially unprotected in life-threatening car crashes.

Hyundai has developed new multi-collision airbag technology.

Hyundai and Kia are working on bringing new hi-tech multi-collision airbags to vehicles.

The airbags would boost driver and passenger safety in up to a third of accidents according to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

The authority says its data show 30 per cent of accidents involve more than one impact, whether with a car, tree, power pole or other object.

The new tech aims to help protect occupants of vehicles that have more than one impact. It works by readying the airbags that have not deployed with the initial impact to go off at much lower impact levels so they can deploy more quickly and effectively in subsequent collisions.

US research has found there are multiple impacts in about one-third of accidents.

Hyundai safety engineer Taesoo Chi believes this refinement will save lives.

“By improving airbag performance in multi-collision scenarios, we expect to significantly improve the safety of our drivers and passengers,” Chi says.

“We will continue our research on more diverse crash situations as part of our commitment to producing even safer vehicles that protect occupants and prevent injuries.”

Hyundai has several other game-changing technologies in the pipeline.

The brand recently revealed tech to assist hearing-impaired drivers. The technology works by using artificial intelligence to interpret sounds and convert them into visual cues.

The cues include warnings via head-up display in addition to vibrations through the steering wheel to alert drivers when too close to an obstacle.

Hyundai also detailed its new holographic augmented reality display at the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month.

Augmented reality dispays can show directions as if in the real world.

The tech works by displaying images on the windscreen or side windows, for example navigation details that drivers would view as if on the road ahead.

The augmented reality tech is being co-developed with Swiss start-up WayRay.