ON THE CUTTING EDGE: Your Grandfather’s BMW
BMW is developing a car for senior citizens that will slow down and guide itself to a stop by the side of the road, and notify the authorities of its location if the driver suffers a heart attack, stroke or other medical emergency and can no longer drive, reports Wired’s “Autopia” blog:
The German automaker launched the project with the country’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research, which wants to improve senior citizens’ quality of life. BMW claims the Emergency Stop Assistant system utilizes a lot of technology already available on its cars and says it will allow seniors to feel more secure on the road.
“Our primary aim is to avoid accidents caused by health-related loss of control - or at least to reduce the severity of such accidents,” Ralf Decke, project manager for Senior Smart at BMW, said in a statement.
The electronic nanny was born of the automaker’s Smart Senior project to develop a wide range of technology intended to make driving easier and safer for seniors.
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