Chapter 5Vision-Based Advanced Driver Assistance Systems

David Gerónimo1, David Vázquez1 and Arturo de la Escalera2

1ADAS Group, Computer Vision Center, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

2Laboratorio de Sistemas Inteligentes, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

5.1 Introduction

Since the early ages of the automotive industry, motor companies have continuously pursued new technologies to improve the passengers' safety. First, relatively simple mechanical artifacts such as the turn signals or seat belts have led to more complex ones such as airbags or pop-up hoods. Then, with the development of electronics, new technologies such as the electronic stability control (ESC) or the advanced brake warning have provided more protection using signal processing. In the last decade, the development of computation has led to a new kind of protection systems: the advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). The ADAS are intelligent systems that help the driver in the driving action by providing warnings, assist to take decisions, and take automatic actions to protect the vehicle passengers and other road users. The main difference between these systems and the former technologies is that while seat belts, airbags, or ESC deploy their functionality after the accident has happened or in the best cases while the dangerous situation is taking place, ADAS are aimed at predicting and avoiding the accident itself.

Such a new technology requires new sensors, different ...

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