Evaluation of rear-end collision avoidance technologies based on real world crash data

Over the last decade, collision avoidance technologies targeting rear-end collisions have been introduced by many vehicle manufacturers. However, evaluation of the real world performance of these systems are rare. The objective of this study was to evaluate the real world effectiveness of systems called Forward Collision Warning and Brake support combined with Adaptive Cruise Control (CWB+ACC). These systems were introduced as optional equipment in Volvo car models in 2006. The data analyzed comes from a detailed, representative dataset based on insurance claims. The rate of rear-end frontal collisions was compared for cars with and without CWB+ACC, controlling for different generations of CWB+ACC as well as presence of Low-speed Emergency Braking functionality. For cars with CWB+ACC, rear-end crashes with frontal impacts were reduced with 38%. Also, the data showed a clear progress in crash avoidance efficiency as a function of CWB+ACC development. For the third generation of CWB+ACC, the estimated collision avoidance effect was 45%. In future studies, the additional safety performance that collision avoidance technologies bring in the form of crash mitigation needs to be investigated.