Volvo is claiming two world first safety technologies for its new XC90 large SUV due out next month: a run-off road protection package and auto brake at intersection capability.

Run-off road protection

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Run-off road is a common accident type with different causes, such as driver distraction, fatigue or poor weather conditions. For example, half of all traffic fatalities in the United States are road departure accidents while, in Sweden, single-vehicle accidents involve one third of all fatal and severe injury crashes with passenger cars.

There are currently no regulatory or rating tests to examine a car’s ability to handle run-off road accidents but the automaker has decided to develop the technology to protect occupants should these situations occur.

The safe positioning capability means that in a run-off road scenario, the car detects what is happening and the front safety belts are tightened to keep the occupants in position. The belts are firmly tightened as long as the car is in motion.

To help prevent spine injuries, energy-absorbing functionality between the seat and seat frame cushions the vertical forces that can arise when the car encounters a hard landing in the terrain. The solution is capable of reducing the vertical occupant forces by up to one third. This counteracts spine injuries, which are serious and relatively frequent consequences of these situations.

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Technologies that help the driver avoid run-off road scenarios include a lane keeping aid, driver alert control and rest stop guidance. 

Auto brake at intersections

The XC90 will be the first car in the world with automatic braking if the driver turns in front of an oncoming car. This is a common scenario at busy city crossings as well as on highways, where the speed limits are higher. The car detects a potential crash and brakes automatically in order to avoid a collision or mitigate the consequences of a crash.