New Valeo technology made to protect pedestrians

Valeo presents Safe4U(TM), an innovative new front end module that reduces the severity of pedestrian injury by 20-40 percent.

Made of energy-absorbing materials such as malleable steel, its architecture optimizes the passive protection of the vehicle's occupants and pedestrians, and allows automakers to meet the new European Pedestrian Impact Phase 2 standard, which comes into force in 2010.

Safe4U also has an active pedestrian detection system using a radar placed above the upper crosspiece and two cameras, one on each side of the bumper, which can distinguish pedestrians from other hazards, according to the company. Once it has identified the risk of collision, two actuators release the upper crosspiece from its supports in under 100 milliseconds. This allows the upper part of the front end to swing back, limiting the maximum effort and spreading it over a longer distance. The system is reversible: if the impact does not take place, the actuators move back into position and reconstitute the front end.

Safe4U, the manufacturer states, is an integral part of the Driving Assistance Domain that develops solutions for improving vehicle safety.

For more information, visit www.valeo.com.