With the aim of increasing automobile safety, Toyoda Gosei has developed a steering wheel with a warning function that can alert drivers by vibrating the steering wheel itself. A vibration unit with a small motor is built into the steering wheel to directly warn the driver when it is sensed that the vehicle is drifting out of its lane unintentionally. The motor rotates an off-centre weight, causing the grip portion of the steering wheel to vibrate to support safer driving.
A key feature of this system is its quiet performance, which is at the top level in the field. In-house tests confirmed that the vibration sound was about half that of similar products on the market while the vibration intensity of the warning was maintained. This quiet performance is achieved with an original method to solidly connect the vibration unit with the metal core of the steering wheel.
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This steering wheel warning system is used on the Toyota Motor Lexus RX launched on 22 October. The system will be on display for visitors to experience in the Toyoda Gosei booth at the Tokyo Motor Show starting on 28 October at Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo.
