Innovative Hi-tech Safety Systems Debut in the Region as of October Production
Two groundbreaking safety innovations from BMW - Night Vision and High-Beam Assistant - will be available on selected models throughout the Middle East from October production, 2005.
Night Vision, that enables early detection of far-off people and animals in the dark, will be introduced on the BMW 7 Series next month and extended to the 5 Series and 6 Series early next year.
High-Beam Assistant - a system that automatically sets the Bi-Xenon headlights to the optimum range and brightness depending on other traffic movements - will be available on the BMW 5, 6 and 7 Series models from October.
Customers can specify both systems as an option with immediate effect.
"The safety of our customers is very important to us," said Guenther Seemann, Managing Director, BMW Group Middle East. "Night Vision and High-Beam Assistant are the latest examples of how BMW invests in safety innovations to continuously provide the ultimate driving experience.
"Take Night Vision for example, it generates a clear image of the road ahead up to 300 metres away, nearly twice the distance of other systems."
BMW Night Vision incorporates an infrared camera that 'illuminates' objects emitting heat. The brightness of the image displayed on the central iDrive monitor varies in line with the amount of heat sensed by the camera. This means that people - pedestrians or cyclists - or animals, will appear as the brightest objects on the monitor, ensuring early detection by the driver. The image always follows the road ahead and remote objects can be enlarged.
With High-Beam Assistant a sensor at the front of the car detects any oncoming light source, allowing the car to automatically switch between high and low beam for the best level of illumination - the car's lights automatically dip when other vehicles' headlights, street lamps or even an oncoming cyclist are detected, then return to full beam when no light source is visible.
High-Beam Assistant is the latest headlight technology to be pioneered by BMW. Xenon main headlights first appeared on BMW cars in 1991 and Bi-Xenon, low and high beam, in 2001. This was followed by Adaptive Headlights, the intelligent headlight control system, which constitutes to yet another innovative contribution for active safety in the BMW cars. This innovation was introduced in 2003 where the headlights swivel to illuminate the road when cornering, improving field of vision in bends and deflecting light away from oncoming traffic.
In 2004 BMW also introduced the automatic vehicle light control, which switches on the headlamps automatically when the environmental lighting conditions require it. This way the driver no longer has to operate the light switch when visibility is limited.
"Driving in the dark is still one of the most strenuous driving situations and one which tends to present a greater risk. For years, BMW has developed innovative technologies that have provided relief for drivers at night and contributed to improved road safety," said Seemann.
"With the new driver assistance systems, BMW Night Vision and High-Beam Assistant, BMW drivers will be able to drive with improved vision in twilight and at night. In addition to helping provide increased driving safety, the task of driving is eased when potentially critical situations are detected early on, resulting in a significant gain in driver comfort."
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For further information please contact:
Rana Jones
Acting Corporate Communications Manager
BMW Group Middle East
Tel: 313 2600
E-mail: rana.jones@bmw.com
Malcolm Ward
MCS/Action
Tel: 390 2960
E-mail: Malcolm.w@actionprgroup.com
Lisa George
MCS/Action
Tel: 390 2960
E-mail: lisa.g@actionprgroup.com
© Press Release 2005
