新汽车科技令驾驶更安全更容易

AS IT IS 2015-12-01 Driving Safer, Easier With New Electronics for Cars 新汽车科技令驾驶更安全更容易

Improvements in electronics for autos are making cars safer and smarter.

Some new car models are fashionable. Others can go a long way on only a little gas. But all are taking advantage of technology that is making driving safer and easier.

The new Ford¹ Escape has technology that helps the car avoid crashes. A new cruise control system changes the car’s speed to keep a safe distance from other cars on the road. It works by using sensors³ that measure the Escape’s distance from other vehicles.

Drivers can connect to the Ford Escape’s electronic system through the dashboard or with their smart phones. The phone can start and track their car from anywhere.

Mark Schirmer is a product representative at Ford.

"Where I'm from, in Michigan, if it's a cold morning, I can have it start up right before I'm scheduled to leave to go to the airport or go to work.

“You can find your car, or if one of your family members, a kid, borrowed the car, it will show you exactly where it is."

Other companies are also hard at work developing technology to make driving safer. The Heedful Audio Alert System, or HAAS, warns drivers when emergency vehicles are near. CEO Cory Hohs said a near-crash with a Chicago fire truck inspired the product.

"It scared me enough that I started looking for a product that would alert me when they're coming."

Hohs said crashes with emergency vehicles are a major problem. The device has a sensor² that detects the sound of an emergency vehicle siren. The device then sends a warning to the driver’s phone or other connected device when an emergency vehicle is in the area.

A company called Sober Steering⁴ has developed a device to stop drunken drivers. The device can detect alcohol in the skin. If the driver’s alcohol level is too high, it shuts down the vehicle.

Sober Steering sells the device to companies that operate large fleets of vehicles, like trucking and bus companies.

Catherine Carroll is the Chief Operating Officer of Sober Steering.

"If I'm drinking and I have levels above a preset limit, it immobilizes the vehicle, so you can't move the vehicle that you're driving."

Just as connected technology is changing life at home and at work, it is also changing life on the road. And increasingly for cars, connected technology has become as important as performance and styling.  

Words in This Story

fashionable - adj. currently popular

cruise control – n. an electronic device in a motor vehicle that can be switched on to maintain a selected constant speed without the use of the accelerator

sensor – n. a device that detects or senses heat, light, sound, motion, etc., and then reacts to it in a particular way

dashboard – n. the part of the inside of a car, truck, etc., that is below the windshield and that has the controls on it

inspire – v. to make (someone) want to do something : to give (someone) an idea about what to do or create

detect – v. to discover or notice the presence of (something that is hidden or hard to see, hear, taste, etc.)

drunk – adj. having drunk so much alcohol that normal actions (such as talking, thinking, and moving) become difficult to do

fleet – n. a group of vehicles that move or work together or that are controlled or owned by one company

immobilize – v. to keep (something or someone) from moving or working : to make (something or someone) immobile

1 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

2 sensor   

n.传感器，探测设备，感觉器（官）

参考例句：

• The temperature sensor is enclosed in a protective well.温度传感器密封在保护套管中。
• He plugged the sensor into a outlet.他把传感器插进电源插座。

3 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

4 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。