Detailed Audi Security Assist System

Audi's driving assistance system today is from adaptive cruise control with stop&go function to speed limit display. Audi provides a rich auxiliary system to make driving more convenient and more controllable. In some high-end car systems, various auxiliary systems have achieved tight networking, which has improved the intelligence of the system and the functions are more comprehensive and powerful. The following explains in detail the usage rules of these newly added auxiliary systems.

Audi active lane keeping

Audi's active lane keeping function is one of the auxiliary systems that Audi is currently providing. Most Audi models equipped with electro-mechanical steering assist can be equipped with this function. At speeds exceeding 60 km/h, Audi's active lane keeping feature detects lane markings using a camera mounted in front of the interior rearview mirror. The camera covers a distance of more than 50 meters in front of the car and a road range of about 40 degrees of view, providing 25 high-resolution images per second.

The onboard software monitors the lane markings and the lanes in the two lane markings from the image. If the car is biased toward a side lane mark without the use of a turn signal, the system will help the car to drive back to the "right way" through minor and effective interventions in the electromechanical steering system. Drivers can use the MMI to determine the speed of the intervention and whether it incorporates steering wheel vibration alerts. If the driver chooses early intervention, the system can keep the car in the middle of the lane. The active lane keeping feature makes Audi stand out from the competition.

Parking assistance

Audi offers a variety of parking systems for all models. These systems either use ultrasound, acousto-optic signals, or rear-view cameras that can display images on an on-board monitor. Of these, parking assistance can be described as a particularly convenient solution. When the driver reverses into position, the parking assistance system is responsible for completing all relevant steering maneuvers. This applies to both vertical parking and parallel side parking. When the car is traveling at a slower speed, the system scans the roadsides in two dimensions and locates the appropriate parking spaces through the side ultrasonic sensors. When the system finds a suitable parking space, it informs the driver through the display screen.

If the driver wants to park in the parking space and hang up the reverse gear, the parking assist system will be activated automatically and complete all the relevant steering controls with the assistance of the electromechanical steering assistance system. The driver must continue to be responsible for acceleration, shifting and braking. The system also provides support through visual and audio signals. When parallel side parking is performed, it is only required that the length of the parking space exceeds the length of the car by about 0.8 meters. If necessary, the parking assistance system will carry out a number of forward and backward "moving warehouses" to complete the parking. When leaving the parking space, the system can provide similar support.

Audi's latest achievement in this area is the enhanced parking system with a 360° omni-directional camera. The four small cameras on the integrated radiator grille, rear and side mirror brackets are responsible for recording the images of the surroundings of the car.

Drivers can use the on-board monitor to select images with different viewing angles to observe the real environment around the car, including a top view. An enhanced parking system with 360° omni-directional cameras not only improves safety when parking, but also ensures safety at narrow junctions. The system provides a special perspective to show real-time conditions in front of the car and behind the car, allowing drivers to see the traffic conditions at the front and rear intersections.

Audi lateral assistance

The Audi lateral assistance is a side-by-side assistance system that can be supplied to all Audi models. This function can monitor the traffic behind the car and warn the driver before the dangerous lane change.

Audi's lateral assistance system will be activated when the car reaches a certain set speed. Two radar sensors located at the exterior rearview mirror with a frequency of 24 GHz were responsible for monitoring the situation within 70 meters of the rear of the vehicle. The data was analysed by the computer.

When it is detected that there is a car in a hazardous area, such as the blind area of ​​the rearview mirror of the vehicle or is rapidly approaching the vehicle from the rear, the system enters the so-called "prompt" stage. At this point, the yellow LED on the outside mirror bracket will light up, but it will not interfere with driving. The driver of the vehicle can only see this prompt when looking directly into the rearview mirror.

If the driver of the vehicle makes a change in the direction of the turn signal at this time, the brightness of the indicator on the outside mirror bracket will suddenly increase and flash. At this time, the system entered the “warning” stage. Such a warning signal would make it difficult for the driver of the vehicle to ignore it. Because the LED indicator light points to the driver, its brightness can be changed according to the brightness of the ambient lighting, and can also be set separately through the MMI control terminal.

Night vision assistance

At the heart of the night vision assistance system is a far-infrared camera located in front of the car. It covers a 24-degree angle of view and is equipped with a glass cover to protect against stones. In cold weather, the glass cover can be heated and cleaned when dirty. As a far-infrared system (FIR), the camera can capture the heat radiation of objects in the scene. The computer converts the data collected by the camera into black and white images and displays it on the center display of the dashboard in the car.

Far-infrared technology has a detection range of up to 300 meters, far beyond the range of high-beam vehicles, and will not fail due to headlights or similar light sources. Most importantly, far-infrared can be focused on the most important object - human. Regardless of whether pedestrians are bright or dark in the environment, they are always bright and visible in far-infrared images because the human body emits heat, while the cooler surroundings are darker.

Image processing software can detect pedestrians within a range of about 100 meters. When analyzing data, the analysis software pays special attention to objects that resemble human outlines, as well as bright round objects—that is, human heads. The pedestrians that the system will be monitored are highlighted with a yellow marker on the display in the center of the dashboard. If the control unit believes that a danger may occur, for example, a pedestrian is walking on the road near the car, the pedestrian in the display will be marked in red and an audible warning will be issued. Warning signs also appear on the head-up displays of some Audi models.

Whether it is marks, audible warnings or image contrast, settings can be made via the MMI system. Like other auxiliary systems, night vision assistance systems have certain system limitations. For example, if the temperature is higher than 28 degrees Celsius, the features that highlight pedestrians will be turned off.

Adaptive cruise control with stop&go function
The core part of Audi's driver assistance system is adaptive cruise control with stop&go function, which is an automatic follow-up distance maintenance system. In the speed range of 0 to 250 km/h, the system controls the speed of the vehicle and the distance to the preceding vehicle through automatic acceleration or automatic braking.

The system uses two radar sensors mounted on the front of the car (automatically heated during cold weather) to operate radar waves at a frequency of 76.5 GHz and covering approximately 40 degrees of field of view and about 250 meters of fan-shaped area. The sensor control unit processes the signal to monitor the front of the car.

Drivers can influence the function of the ACC system. From sports to comfort, the distance from the front car and the intervention of the control system are gradable and adjustable. The maximum deceleration of the system is limited to approximately 4 m/s2, which is approximately one third of the maximum deceleration.

Faced with stop-and-go traffic conditions, the ACC system can automatically slow down until parking. After a brief stop at the traffic light, the car restarts automatically to keep up with the car. If it is after a long stop, the driver must press the throttle or control the control lever to continue to follow the car. Before starting, the system will check the image data provided by the camera on the interior rearview mirror. In this way, the system can detect potential dangers - for example, want to grab pedestrians crossing the street at the last minute of the green light. The parking system's ultrasonic sensors provide more detailed information and monitor the car's start-up process.

The ACC system interacts closely with other driver assistance systems and uses data from as many as 27 control units to continuously analyze the surroundings of the vehicle and provide predictive support even under complex conditions. For example, the system cooperates with the navigation system to know the selected route in advance and calculate the lane on the curve.

ACC systems can come in handy in many situations. Whether it is a rapid turn over a right-turn car on a country road or other car entering the car's driveway on a freeway, the system's responsive, calm response is comparable to that of a highly skilled driver, making driving even more efficient. Smooth and coordinated.

Audi offers multiple versions of ACC systems for different models, including those without stop/start function. Depending on the degree of networking and the level of expansion, the features of each version are slightly different.