Picture this scenario. You’re strolling through Manhattan about to cross Fifth Avenue when you see a car barreling along towards the intersection. The WALK light for you is illuminated, the car has a red light. The driver sees you, right? Or, the self-driving system in that car is picking you up? I’m not gonna die if I cross the street now, right? How do you know for certain?
How about this next situation? There’s stopped traffic on I-95, and you’re the last car in the backup. In the rearview, you see a car approaching at a rather high velocity. They’ll stop, right? Or do I need to punch it and get onto the shoulder RIGHT NOW?
source: Wikipedia and topsize20
The simple answer is that, unless the car in question is a softly sprung thing that buries its nose in the asphalt on hard braking, you just can’t tell. Unless the car has those moving eyes like Jason has reported on, but that doesn’t mean the thing is stopping. What about front brake lights?
Yes, that’s right. Something on the front of the car that can tell people in the path of a vehicle that yes, the driver/car is in fact slowing down.
The idea for this is hardly new, the earliest example I see being from the late sixties. There is a plastics manufacturer called Rohm and Haas, and in the late sixties they were pushing to get their plexiglass technology applied to automobiles. Ultimately, the idea was only implemented (with great difficulty) to one car- the Bricklin SV-1. However, to promote this technology Rohm and Haas made show cars that featured not just their innovative plastics, but futuristic design features as well. Note the lighting on this thing:
WARNING: The following images could cause extreme arousal if your name is Jason Torchinsky
source: flickr
Note the blue front brake lights next to the (equally high visibility) turn signals above the windshield.
A later show car (below) had the blue brake lights above the headlights.
This one even had a green light in the back to show that the car was accelerating! If you scroll though the link to the brochure..it has a bunch of other insane features like a roll out trunk:
source: flickr
More recently the great design Godfather (or is that Golf-father…HA!) Giorgetto Giugiaro has been a proponent of these. Note his comments on one of his concept cars that he designed not that long ago:
“See the brake lights at the front? It means pedestrians know when you’re slowing down at crossings!”
source: Rutdger Van Der Maar/Flickr
There’s even a website devoted to front brake lights (which seems to suggest a green color on the grille).
[Editor’s Note: This appears to be some kind of German research organization assessing the feature’s value and its regulatory viability; just look at all these Germans talking about front brake lights (“Vordere Bremsleuchte”) at a conference in Belgium:
The organization introduces the technology’s purpose on the website’s home page, writing:
Given the complex triangular relationship between human, vehicle and environmental factors, advances in traffic safety will always have to encompass a variety of innovations. One of these could be the front mounted brake light, a forward-facing lighting device that illuminates simultaneously with the rear brake lights and tells on-coming road users that the car is braking.
The home page continues, discussing the main potential benefits of the tech:
The catalogue of possible applications of a Front Brake Light includes multiple cases to improve communication between road users and thus ensure greater traffic safety. Such cases are by no means limited to asymmetric conflicts (e.g. vehicle / pedestrian). Also in a vehicle / vehicle constellation the Front Brake Light has potential to avoid collisions.
Main benefits of a Front Brake Light are expected to be
- Prevention of collisions in specific situations
- Reduction of the severity of accidents by its warning function
- Road user communication issues (esp. with electric and / or highly automated vehicles)
- Reduction in stress whilst driving
The site even includes a research paper written by some of the people in the photo above. Titled “Potential safety effects of a frontal brake light for motor vehicles,” it begins with an abstract highlighting the point of this whole discussion:
The number of pedestrian casualties in crashes with motorised vehicles is still alarming. Misunderstandings about the other road users’ intentions are certainly one contributory factor. Especially given recent developments in vehicle automation, informing about ‘vehicle behaviour’ and ‘vehicle intentions’ in the absence of any direct interaction between the driver and the outside world is becoming increasingly relevant. A frontal brake light which communicates that a vehicle is decelerating could be a simple approach to support pedestrians and other road users in the interaction with (potentially automated) motorised vehicles.
The paper includes some kind of video-based research that concluded, with a number of caveats about the setup, that the light helps pedestrians more quickly determine when a car is slowing down:
The results of our investigation indicate that the use of a frontal brake light can lead to considerable improvements in the identification of a vehicle decelerating. This, in itself, is not surprising. The extent of these improvements, however, is remarkable. For example, without a frontal brake light, the identification of a rather average deceleration (3.5 m/s2 ) that started at a typical approach speed (50 km/h) took a full 1.5 s longer than with the light. This technology, therefore, has obviously the potential to speed up decision processes with regard to pedestrian crossing decisions. In general, any road user ahead, e.g. another car about to make a left turn across our vehicle’s lane, might benefit from the information. It has to be acknowledged, however, that the chosen laboratory setup and the video material that was used reflect only parts of a natural crossing situation.
Here’s a plot from that paper:
The German front brake light advocates mention on their website a 1971 study by the Highway Safety Research Institute at the University of Michigan. Titled “SUBJECTIVE EVALUATION OF THE FRONT-MOUNTED BRAKING SIGNAL,” the paper includes the following conclusion based on surveys conducted of laypeople and of people who had driven for a month cars equipped with experimental front brake lights:
1. Some subjects felt that the front brake signal had some utility as a means of increasing inter-driver or driver-pedestrian communication.
2. The findings of this preliminary investigation suggest that a more comprehensive evaluation is warranted.
3. Objective evidence should be provided that a front brake signal will provide a greater margin of vehicular safety.
4. A study should be conducted using test vehicles to determine how this added signal will affect the performance of other drivers and pedestrians. For example, a driver whose vehicle is not slowing down may tap the brake pedal when approaching an intersection and find cars pulling out dangerously close in front of him, because the other drivers assumed that he would make a right turn.
5. If such a signal should be found to be valuable it would probably be necessary to conduct a public education campaign to explain its function.
There’s even discussion about the right color and location of a front brake light:
The preference of the non-users was for a red-colored grille located “front brake light.” This preference was apparently modified by use of the forward brake signaling unit as users indicated a preference for an amber light located on the windshield. It is evident that persons unfamiliar with the forward brake signaling concept did not consider the amber color and windshield location to be obviously appropriate. Thus, a conflict exists between initial preference and the effects of exposure to an alternative color and location. It should be noted that at one time blue was considered an appropriate color for a front brake light (Fisher and Bostwick, 1968) .
And there are notes on what the subjects who used the lights for a month thought about the light’s purpose, its brightness, its flaws, and more:
Anyway, back to our daydreaming designer, The Bishop. -DT]
source: Front Brake Lights
So what do I propose? I don’t think this light should be mounted among the other lighting at the front of the car. You might not see it (I barely see the one on the BMW above) and it will be obscured by daytime running lights. So, basically I’m imagining a CHMSL (Center High Mounted Stop Light) at the front of the car.
Actually, it would probably have to be two, since in many cases the center of the windshield is filled with rear view mirror and driving assist cameras. I’d like to see red, but are there laws against that? Likely, but laws can change, and red really does mean stop. Having it high up and aimed at sort of an angle would keep your hood from getting a red glow from the lights.
source: Tesla
One other thing. I don’t know if this should be wired directly to the brake lights in back, and here is why. The idea is to show pedestrians and other cars that you are stopping. When at a standstill or, worse yet, sitting in bumper to bumper traffic with everyone on the brake pedal, that’s a lot of red light (or blue light or whatever) to be shining in your rear view mirror or camera.
[Editor’s Note: It’s worth mentioning that the German organization running “Frontbrakelights.com” addresses both why it thinks green would make for the right color, and how the system would wire into a current vehicle’s electrical system:
A Front Brake Light must be regarded as a light-signalling function (LSF) within the meaning of authorization[1], as a version with a lower light intensity would not be fit for purpose.
For the conception of a new LSF on motor vehicles, there is always the question of the appropriate light colour to be used – as well from a legal as a factual point of view. As other colours are legally assigned already to special situations and / or special types of vehicles, choice is left between green and white.
Given the already existing high number and range of variation in forward-acting white light signals (dipped beam, high beam, fog lights, etc.), the use of a white Front Brake Light could result in ambiguous information being received, thus nullifying its benefit for traffic safety.
The colour green, however, is not used for LSF on motor vehicles yet, but therefore offers the advantage of unambiguousness and fast signal identification. Furthermore it is well known in road environment (i.e. traffic signals) and for purpose of a Front Brake Light will also be supported by psychological points of view against other colours, especially red.
It is assumed that the Front Brake Light is linked directly to the rear brake lights and thus only one more device must be connected to otherwise identical circuits in the control unit(s). With regard to the design of a Front Brake Light, a number of variants are conceivable, depending on the type of vehicle and its vehicle design.
Therefore implementing a Front Brake Light within existing technical conceptions of vehicles is most easy from a technical point of view.
-DT]
I think the light itself could work similar to something BMW has done (and others likely as well) called Brake Force Lights. What this involves is essentially taking the red lights that are used as rear fog lights overseas and wire them up so they illuminate when heavy brake pressure is applied (probably when ABS is engaged). They then turn off and do not light up in normal braking.
source: BimmerForums
These front lights would illuminate only on moderate to major deceleration (remember, EVs can stop without brakes) but then turn off after five to ten seconds of the car stopping. [Editor’s Note: Or you could wire them up to an accelerometer, and have them illuminate when there’s a certain rate of change of velocity. -DT].
source: Tesla and The Bishop
Do we REALLY need more lights on a car? I would argue that we do, especially with the advent of self driving cars and virtually everyone wondering if these will work or if they are gonna go Maximum Overdrive on us (terrible movie).
What do you Autopians think?
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Individual VS Organisation
Front Stop Light (FSL) red VS Front Brake Light (FBL) green
expert Croatia VS experts German,Slovakia … e t c ..
Please read / part – without graphics / the expert work,
by the author POLJAK IVO road traffic enginer.
Thank you all.
—————————————————————————————————————
Dynamic research of front (brake) stop lights FSL or insufficient
technological inventiveness in the last 50 years
Poljak Ivo*
Independent engineer researcher in traffic technology ,
Kralja Zvonimira 79, 21000 Split Croatia – Hrvatska
TV cameraman in HRT Croatian television, Prisavlje 3, 10000 Zagreb
Abstract
The project of the front stop light on the car, in my research work, in cooperation with the State Intellectual Property Office of the Republic of Croatia and the State Office for Metrology of the Republic of Croatia has been further expanded and improved.
Insight into other EU Patent Offices brings all the complexity of the security solution called Front Stop Light – FSL. The insight to the world’s patent offices, works on FSL date from 1972 to the present, almost 50 years. The intention is to present specific
forms of chronological Patent applications from individual countries. Also, using the comparative method and the method of proof, to present other concepts of the front stop light model, and deductively use the axiomatic method to show the level of
legal-technical-technological completeness of the compared front stop light concepts from Croatia, Germany and Slovakia (EU).
In parallel, while this paper is being published, a field test of the front brake lights in real traffic will be carried out in the summer. Therefore, after laboratory testing, in the wider area of Bratislava, of Berlin, with the support of the Slovak Government, Universities, German Universities, Institutes and other partners, real tests with dynamic green stop light will be conducted.
Keywords: : research, front brake (stop) light, new technological element, new definition, red or green stop light, concept development, road
safety
1. Introduction
Patent HR application P 20030986 A (2003 Zagreb) was rejected because it was found that the application was
similar to earlier Patent applications:
U.S. 5253115 / 12. 10. 1993 Japan (1993), U.S. 5255165 / 19. 10. 1993 Ohio SAD (1993.), DE 19836526 A1/ 17.
2. 2000 (2000), EP 1236615 A1 / 4. 9. 2002 CH (2002), DE 201 20 248 U 1 / 8. 8. 2002 DE. (2002)
One such U.S. Patent applications also contains, like as in Fig 1., a required graphic portion. In addition, I am quoting and bringing a series of similar applications related to the front stop light, from the US Archives below:
„U.S. Pat. No. 3, 665,392. Inventor: John T. Anna’s issued: May 23, 1972 (1972)
A driver communication signal mounted against the front windshield of a motor vehicle, visible to pedestrians and on-corning traffic and automatically energized upon brake application to indicate driver’s intention to stop. …“
„U.S. Pat. No. 4, 532,578. Inventor: David W. Gaden et al. Issued: Jul. 30, 1985 A vehicle (1985) body lamp mounting arrangement wherein a vehicle body lamp assembly includes linear retention flanges on its upper and lower walls which engage behind and in face to face relationship with. …“
Fig. 1.
The usual appearance of a Patent application – graphic partU.S. Pat. No. 4, 940, 962 Inventor: Jerry L. Sarokin Issued: Jul. 10, 1990 (5)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 188, 445 Inventor: Harold Haun et al.Issued: Feb. 23, 1993 (6)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 255, 165 Inventor: John M. Cail Issued: Oct. 19, 1993 (7)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 373, 426 Inventor: Alan L. O’Sullivan Issued: Dec. 13, 1994 (8)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 537, 091 Inventor: Harold L. Hull et al.Issued: Jul. 16, 1996 (9)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 680, 101 Inventor: Laurence S. Pitcher Issued: Oct. 21, 1997 (10)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 758, 944 Inventor: Gary David Jandron Issued: Jun. 2, 1998 (11)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 788, 358 Inventor: Richard E. Davis Issued: Aug. 4, 1998 (12)
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 798, 691 Inventor: Nien Tsu Tim Kao Issued: Aug. 25, 1998 (13)
These Patent applications contain several pictorial and textual explanations that are not sufficient for the final
development of the concept. For the conceptual application of the car with a front stop light (seen from the angle of
traffic or wider communication), there must be a number of precise claims and evidence. Is it a“ timeless project”?
2. According to development
The concepts are in principle complex, but they are also composed of a number of less complex basic elements.
The element of the (front) stop light contains definition and technical performance of the same. The second element
is the car itself with a front stop light, as on Fig. 2. which contains a technically integrated light with a known signal
level (650-700 nm) that transmits to the front of the vehicle, while one or more wheels are blocked, while the
vehicle is in standby and under electrical contact.
Fig. 2.
Position and level of the red signal for a personal passenger carFrom the cooperation with the office of the DZM RH State Bureau of Metrology (2013), UN ECE (2013 to
2021) and Transport department, these output value parameters came out and were proposed:
Modified definition of stop light according to the standards of UN ECE Regulations 48 and 7, is a condition of
existing cars with front stop light. (2009 to 2013)
„1.3. „Stop lamp“ means the lamp used to indicate to other road-users to the rear of the vehicle that its driver is
applying the service brake. When a vehicle is stopped, when one or more wheels are blocked, phase sends equivalent signal on front of the vehicle also. The stop-lamps may be activated by the application of a retarder or a
similar device. “
„2.7.12. „Stop lamp“ means a lamp used to indicate to other road users to the rear of the vehicle, that the
longitudinal movement of the vehicle is intentionally retarded.
When a vehicle is stopped, when one or more wheels are blocked, phase sends equivalent signal on front of the
vehicle also.“
Regulation No . 48.
Paragraph 2. 7.12., amend to read:
„2.7.12. „Stop lamp“ means a lamp used to indicate to other road users to the both sides of the vehicle, front and rear, that the longitudinal movement of the vehicle is intentionally retarded“
Regulation No. 7.
Paragraph 1.3., amend to read:
„1.3.“Stop-lamp“ means the lamp used to indicate to other road-users to the both sides of the vehicle, front and rear, that its driver is applying the service brake. The stop-lamps may be activated by the application of a retarder or
a similar device. “
About traffic regulations
1. The new definition, the provision on FSL / on the front stop light – signal / does not impose an obligation to change the existing traffic rules, nor would it affect the application of the same. For ease of recognition, front stop light (FSL) = front brake light (FBL) or head brake light (HBL).
2. General Croatian Concept car with front stop light (FSL) has a red signal. (From 2003)
3. Concept development
Of these 16 listed concept cases 94 % are not and are unlikely to reach greater elaboration than the initial application, so only two concepts will be discussed further. One HR Concept retains the known stop light signal (red 2003 y.), while the other (D, SK, EU) Concepts include a new signal (green 540-570 nm) in the stoplight context.
(2018 – 2021 y.)
About the technical characteristics of the vehicle
If the legislator accepts the proposal of this change in the definition of stop light, installation would be mandatory,and part of the regulations on vehicles in traffic would be changed. It seems that the non-obligation to install in this case would only be a path to the obligatory. Namely, then everything would depend on the dynamics of acceptance of professional circles; their will, knowledge and vision.
About road traffic technology – in general
In all variants, the interaction of all traffic participants, and their level of safety, would be improved. Warning,regulation, analysis and safety are some of the key concepts of this project.
When exactly is the FSL (Front Stop Lamp) signal activated?
This question was asked by the State Bureau of Metrology. I have made a whole study to answer their question.
Unfortunately, there is no place for it here.
In order for the FSL signal to be activated, it must be initiated by, for example, a dynamic sensor
The FSL device stimulates a dynamic sensor from the edge of a wheel, axle, or bearing
The same sensor – encoder-switch registers the circumferential speed-rotation of the wheel axle and reacts when
V = O m / s or the angle of rotation of ~ π / 32 (180o / 32)
Dynamic encoder – switch must be connected to the phase of two brakes by pulling the parking brake and pressing the foot brake, provided that “the vehicle is under el. contact », and that the sensor registers the blockage of one or more wheels, FSL must be switched on, and vice versa…
The FSL is switched off when the service and parking brakes are released and the sensor registers a greater angle of rotation of ~ π / 32 as a movement, although a circumferential speed V = O m / s is still recorded.
The conditions under which the sensor can operate are: that the vehicle is in contact, that it acts on brakes that are phase-connected, and that the initial parameter V = O m / s or the angle of rotation (smaller) < from 5.6 °
The difference between the signal of the rear stop light and the front would be that the front stop light would not turn on and off at the so-called braking the vehicle, unless one of the wheels is locked during such braking.
Another important difference is that in the so-called. unlocking the vehicle -releasing the brake, namely, the front stop light would not record the switching off and on of the signal Until the angle of rotation of the wheels was (greater) > than 5.6°
So front and rear stop light operation is in most operation, two independent systems. A dependent and infrequent common phase when both stop lights are switched on in parallel would only be possible in cases of sudden braking – an incident – when one or more wheels are locked. This mode of operation allows extensibility to some other vehicle systems, but this is not primary here and now.
The condition when the circumferential wheel speed V = O m / s is recorded and the angle of rotation (smaller) < of 5.6 °, and in the context of switching the stop light reflex on and off (here), is called rest (o.p.I.P.).
In general, when the vehicle is “out of contact”, there is no FSL signal and vice versa.
Fig. 3.
Sketches of vehicles; a) in motion, b) at the rest or in the incidentFront stop lamp-light as a signal is visible when the corresponding sensor registers the blocking of one or more wheels, and vice versa the signal is invisible when the sensor registers the unblocking of all wheels.
So the signal performs its function when – it turns on, and when – it turns off, like on
I. Vehicle acceleration
II. Vehicle deceleration
III. Stopped vehicle
I. DYNAMIC normal phase (+a acceleration)
The FSL is switched off, and acts as a control and warning signal, on a vehicle that is stationary but will soon start moving.
II. DYNAMIC incident phase (-a deceleration)
FSL is on and acts as a warning and control signal during an incident situation on and around the road where the driver intentionally brakes the wheel (s) due to an accident on or off the vehicle
III. STATIC normal phase (V = 0 m/s idling)
FSL is on and acts as a control and warning signal when the vehicle is in traffic,stationary or when one of the wheels is not rotating. Wheel deflection from 0 ̊ – 5.6 ̊ in one of the directions of movement, as in Fig. 4. The sensordoes not register as movement.
Fig. 4.
Sketch of wheel deflection with symmetrical deviationA wheel is considered to be locked if it has a smaller degree of rotation-displacement of 5.6 o, on the contrary, a wheel is unlocked if it has a recorded rotation displacement greater than 5.6 o New technical elements of FSL vehicles create news data like as in Fig. 5a and Fig. 5b, and in a certain traffic situations, this data can be used,among other for technical-technological analyzes. So when the stop light is on, and at r sin α up to 5.6 °, the so-called “forward to back” short movement of the vehicle in place, up to this angular value will not turn it off.
Fig. 5.
Sketch’s; vehicles a) and vehicles b) with accompanying technical data4. Comparisons red – green
Justification of application of the FSL warning signal
1. If the so-called the warning signal or the flashing of all turn signals include conscious, non-reflex actions, and independently of the operation of the braking system, cannot be compared with the function of the FSL and its clear signal.
1.1. If the same signal is activated by reflex actions, and depending on the braking system, it would create confusion and complicate traffic (especially in a dynamic sense).
1.1.2. If the same signal is activated by reflex actions (green stop light), depending on the braking system, this would create confusion and complicate traffic (especially in a dynamic sense).
What do a red signal and a green signal mean in driving philosophy?
FSL is not dubious, it is clear, it is security-friendly. It is not expected that the signal will intertwine with other signalling devices, and for the reason that the basic-primary function by definition of the stop light assumes operation only for vehicles that are not moving, and the method of installation on the vehicle is different.
Can the same be said for the green stop light signal?
FSL primarily has a regulatory function, and rarely can it have another warning function for an incident.
Can the same be said for the green stop light signal?
On the move, a vehicle with FSL can only signal an incident.
Can the same be said for the green stop light signal?
Ambiguities, confusions and doubts that “only” warn, but also vaguely indicate or inaccurately reflect the situation on the road or near the road, also are dangerous or as the rear stop light which deceives due to braking and does not record all decelerations.
5. Instead of a conclusion
The clarity of legal provisions point to a logical conclusion.
What would be the reason for expectation of the installation of the so-called “Front Stop Light“?
The reason is the ambiguity of the condition of vehicles and drivers in terms of expectations of actions in frequent,complex and incidental conditions – traffic situations. The aim is to decrease the interference of signals and other luminous energy levels and their meanings at the front of the vehicle.
It is expected that FSL installed on the vehicle with a clear and resolute signal determines the condition of the vehicle-driver. Also, it facilitates the driver’s or pedestrian’s decision in terms of (correct and incorrect) expectations, increases the level of visibility of the vehicle, primarily regulates and partially warns of road
conditions level of road safety (with indirect reductions in all damages).
Today, after many years, we have “timeless project” completed in Croatia. Its elaborated materials are sufficient for a master’s, doctorate degree, or for application in field of road traffic. Unfortunately, discrimination and inertia everywhere affect the outcomes, as it is here also.
In the past 50 years, the side turn signals had to be abolished and allowed for a second time (because of which parameters?). Accordingly, industrial design strongly influenced on traffic road safety, for example;
How do turn signals, installed in, or near the headlights work?
Can the turn signals be seen (at night) when the headlights are on?
Does the flash of the headlights cancel the function of the direction indicator for which they are installed in-on the vehicle?
This work was elaborated in detail by the author who openly invites experts from this and other fields to wider analysis related to FSL and safety road traffic.
References
Croatia state metrology institute, personal communication, expert work, URBROJ 558-04/1-13-4, 2013, Zagreb
Imhof Mario, Sigg Simon, Mischler Thomas, Bern, CH EU Patent Office, Pat. applicat. EP 1236615A1, 4. 9. 2002 https://www.frontbrakelights.com/de/meilensteine-und-erste-vorstellung-der-fachwelt/
Mysliwski Tadeusz, Deutches patent – und Markenamt, Patent application, DE 198 36 526 A 1 /17.2. 2000 Patent office U.S. (1-13)
John M. Cail, Eaton, Mysliwski Tadeusz, Nurnberg, U.S. Patent office, Patent applicat. 5, 255, 165 / 19. 10.1993
Yasushi Ueno, Hino, Kohnan-Ku, Yokohama, Japan, U.S. Patent office, Patent applicat. 5, 253115 / 12. 10.1993
John T. Annas, Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 3,665, 392. , Issued: May 23, 1972
David W. Gaden et al. Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 4,532, 578, Issued: Jul. 30, 1985
Jerry L. Sarokin , Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 4, 940, 962, Issued: Jul. 10, 1990
Harold Haun et al. Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5, 188, 445, Issued: Feb. 23, 1993 J
John M. CailIssued , Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5, 255, 165, Issued: Oct. 19, 1993
Alan L. O’Sullivan , Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5, 373, 426, Issued: Dec. 13, 1994
Harold L. Hull et al., Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5, 537, 091, Issued: Jul. 16, 1996 Laurence S. Pitcher , Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5, 680, 101, Issued: Oct. 21, 1997
Gary David Jandron, Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5,758, 944, Issued: Jun. 2, 1998
Richard E. Davis , Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5,788, 358I, Issued: Aug. 4, 1998
Nien Tsu Tim Kao , Inventor, U.S. Pat. No. 5,798,691, Issued: Aug. 25, 1998
Poljak Ivo, Croatian State Intellectual Property Office, Patent applicat.,
P 20030986A,2003/2004, Zagreb, HR
Poljak Ivo, Applications of cars with front stop lamp technological novelty of road traffic, ZIRP, 2009, Zagreb
Poljak Ivo, Croatian Concept car with front stop light, personal communication, exp. work, 2018, Split, Croatia
Schmidt Wilhelm, Maintal Deutches Patent – und Markenamt, Patent application DE 201 20 248 U1 / 8.8.2002
UNECE, Transport department, personal communication, opinions from 2009 to 2013, Geneve -Zagreb
I think new cars need lots more lights. Lights that indicate if the lights are on, Turn signal lights on BOTH sides that indicate the car is about to turn, lights on the roof (like pickups), lights UNDER the car when the pavement is rough, I just cant think of more examples right now, but we need lots more lights.
For years I was aware of, and occasionally drove past, a Rohm and Haas plant located in Bristol, PA. Never knew exactly what they manufactured, or that they had a presence in the automotive industry. Pretty neat.
A front brake light would be great in my opinion. I also like the idea of brake lights that show how hard someone is braking, like the flashing ones they use in Europe.
It drives me crazy when I am coming up on an intersection and I cannot tell if a car coming from the side street is actually going to stop. If people would not wait until the last moment to slow down for stop signs it would help, but I don’t suppose we are going to get people to stop that.
I think the green mounted in the front of the grill area in a strip would be best. Nobody uses green, at least in US, so it would stand out.
Well, my name must be Jason Torchinsky…
But more seriously, what if there was a way to combine front brake lights with the “line-of-sight” concept that was tested with the eyes? The way I can imagine it is like a KITT style scanner bar on the front of the car that lights up when the vehicle is braking, but concentrates the light where ever the sensors are detecting movement or pedestrians. I’m not a designer, but it’s just a thought.
I agree that drivers shouldn’t stop in traffic to let pedestrians cross (and pedestrians shouldn’t be crossing traffic randomly), but they should stop at crosswalks and stop signs and signals, even though sometimes they don’t. Having an indication that they actually are stopping would be a good thing, IMHO. Related: when I was stationed in Turkey, one of the first things they told us about driving there was “When a pedestrian steps out into heavy traffic, do NOT slow down. It just throws their timing off.” From experience, that is 100% true. People would step out into multilane high-speed traffic in the dark of night (very few streetlights over there), wearing black robes and sandals, but they totally knew what they were doing and as a driver, you just let them do it. BTW, if you haven’t driven in Turkey, I highly recommend it. It’s kind of like being in a demolition derby with fewer crashes. Traffic guidance (traffic lights, speed limits, lanes, sidewalks, etc.) is viewed as mere suggestion. There’s only one immutable law: the biggest vehicle wins. The best way I can describe it is driving like you walk on a crowded sidewalk: go with the flow, fill the gap if you see one, go around anybody who’s moving slowly, and avoid getting stepped on. Sure you bump into those around you from time to time, or get pushed around, but it’s no big deal.
Purple is the colour you are looking for. Red from the front could be confusing.
Honestly, making universally good color choices for these kinds of rules/regulations has to be so difficult once you account for colorblindness.
Italy did consider mandating the front brake lamps in the 1980s. Two reasons: pedestrians doing suicide run and drivers participating in the Death Race 2000. Many times the pedestrians don’t bother waiting for the traffic to stop before waltzing across the pedestrian crossings or checking to ensure the vehicles actually slow down and stop. Sometimes the drivers don’t bother to stop for the pedestrians. Both are very common in the rural areas and elevated Italy to the first place on the pedestrian death chart in European Union.
Driving in Italy for five days aged my father twenty years. He vowed not to drive in Italy ever again.
Eric- like anything, the lights would not be a cure-all. Just like turn signals and current brake lights (are they really stopping or two pedal driving?) you have to use judgement as well, but it at least gives SOME indication that the driver or car at least knows you’re there. No lights means I ain’t walking or I’m getting the hell out of the way.
Nice idea, shoud also be easy to wire up togehter with the rear brake lights. Maybe I should try it on one of my classic cars with 8 year inspection interval?
But since nobody seems to care about lights these days – not using indicators, forgetting to turn the (rear) lights lights on when it’s dark, blinding others with their high mounted “automatic” LED lights on thir SUVs – it’s not going to get high priority and be requested by customers, like cup holders.
Some security oriented brand like Volvo could probably make some positive press on it. We could hope for it being implemented on the next Mercedes S-class, so we regular peasants will get it in 2045..
Green is the “go ahead” colour in traffic, so if someone cuts in right in front of you and you have to brake hard, you’re automaticly giving them the go ahead light, which could encourage ruthless motorists to do it even more often.
Vehicle lighting regulations in the USA are an absolute joke to begin with. How about we start by mandating amber turn signals and flashing side markers already like the rest of the world.
I wonder how many Americans have needlessly died over the years in accidents that could have been prevented if only their car didn’t have a stupid blinking brake light.
This has been added to my imaginary concept dream car to go along with the stylized “bar graph” brakelights indicating the level of braking/deacceleration (at least three levels from slowdown to panic stop).
How about a rear head light that you can flash at people behind you with their high beams on, glaring into your rearview mirrors? or no lights on at all.
Would take a lot to get this changed for U.S. law probably, seems too similar to what regulations would consider emergency vehicle lighting.
Every car sold in Europe already has that, it’s called a rear fog light but it would be just as useful to flash the person behind you.
They’re not even illegal in the USA, just very rare since they’re not required.
That could work, though that’s another thing people seemed to drive around with on blast when they don’t need them.
Don’t know how true it is, but I once read a Twitter exchange where someone wondered about a better way to “thank” someone for letting you merge in front of them and someone said in Europe/some areas, people do that with hitting the 4-way flashers – but that also wouldn’t work in the U.S. with the number of red signals or combined signal/stop lamps, it would more like a brake check.
Truckers do this in the US. If you flash them to let them know they are OK to merge in front of you, they’ll typically flash their hazards at you briefly.
A4A- my SAAB 9-3 had rear fog lights. Actually it just had a bulb in one side; the other socket was empty (from the factory for US models, I think) and I just popped in a bulb and it worked. It was great for brake checking people without actually hitting the brakes.
I just want rear-facing high-beams to blind the tailgaters behind me. OH, maybe a camera flash? No, no a laser pen to blind them!
/s
This is an excellent idea.
I also assert that dark tint windows are a major hazard as well.
When I’m approaching a car that’s 90 degrees to me and I can see the driver, I can tell if he has seen me. Dark tint prevents that. Unsafe and even more so if one is riding a bicycle.
-Had to comment for the 1st time on this AWESOME site to say I was just surprised to see a “Maximum Overdrive is terrible” comment- of course everyone has their own taste in movies/music/CARS!/etc. but that’s one of my favorite movies ever, have seen 10 times (although the alternate movie “TRUCKS” really is terrible!)
-Also, front “brake” lights not needed…can’t trust idiots on their phones even when stopped!
-I LOVE this site! More David Tracy please!
Freeliving- I said the movie was terrible..I didn’t say that I wasn’t watchable!
The biggest problem I see with this overall rather good idea is that it would take absolute ages before you could believe the signal. The average car on the road in the US is 12-13 years old, and that’s just the average—half are older, some by a lot.
So if this was implemented tomorrow, in 2035 it would still be 50-50 whether or not a car coming up behind you with no front brake light lit was about to rear-end you, or just too old to have front brake lights. It would be meaningless.
Even a full human generation later, you’d have people freaking out and doing emergency evasive maneuvers when approached from behind by someone in a classic car from before the time of front brake lights. That would be downright dangerous.
The only solution would be to require that they be retrofitted to all existing cars, which is something I don’t think has ever really been done for a new safety feature. I guess it wouldn’t be impossible, but it sure would be weird.
Halftrack- I mean, CHMSLs came out and we didn’t have to retrofit older cars, but admittedly there was still as set of brake lights illuminating. However, it is funny how when I follow cars with burned out (typically incandescent) CHMSLs it sometimes takes me a millisecond more to register that they are stopping.
I do think that’s a very different scenario. CHMSLs just emphasize a signal that everyone already expects. Like you said, even if the CHMSL is absent or inoperative, the rear brake light system still works—albeit in a slightly degraded state.
A FMSL (see what I did there?) would be a whole new signal, whose absence meant either that the car wasn’t stopping or that the FMSL was absent/broken. A solution that I just thought of would be to have one light for not-braking and a different one for braking. Say, a green light if the car’s brakes are not applied, and a red one for if they are. In that case, no light at all could only mean a missing or broken FMSL system.
Dag nabbit, I fudged up my HTML there. What are the chances of an edit button anytime soon?
Halftrack- also my bigger concern (and likely a lot of people’s) isn’t current/older cars. It’s the new fully self driving cars. As much as I dont trust other drivers I trust self driving tech even less right now, so the lights would be ideal to let me know the sensors see me and know to stop.
Sure, I get that, but when it’s coming up behind you at 60 mph while you sit stopped dead at the back of a traffic jam, how long do you want to spend squinting in your rear view mirror, trying to decide whether AI (or driver) in the car bearing down on your butt is out to lunch, or whether it’s just a slightly older version from before front brake lights existed?
Is that last year’s grill treatment, or just the base trim level? Did they offer that shade of gray two years ago? Wait, when did that car get front brake lights anyway? WHAM!
Halftrack- if something is bearing down on me that fast and I don’t see lights I’m getting out of the way regardless of the year of car and if the car is equipped with FMSLs (I like that, BTW) or not. Period.
Wait…how about a single red light that moves side to side on the front edge of the hood. How cool would that be? Call it something KITT lights?!!
*just kidding*
bertfrog- I still think it should go about the windshield. Maybe a row of lights that cycle back and forth. It would actually be like the lights below the screen on the bridge of the first Startrek Enterprise. Just wish it would make the same noise as that.
or that WHOOSH WHOOSH that KITT made
I have 2 vehicles that were made before CHMSL’s and I have had folks tell me that my brake lights didn’t work. Turns out they do, they are just incandescent and therefor not that bright.
As long as these lights aren’t red. I’m not kidding you when I say that last week I was in front of some moron who decided it was a great idea to use red lights as DRLs or fogs on some crapped out civic. Did it ever cause confusion to everyone in front of him – looked like he was driving the wrong way.
I think they likely would be a different color, but I really do think they should be mounted high up for the same reason CHMSLs are, especially with cars with Daytime Running Lights. A green light in the grill isn’t gonna do the job.
This would be even cooler if (given the lead time it’ll take to get this into law) it’s coupled with mandatory sounds of some sort.
I’m still amazed that we’ve had hybrids for as long as we have and there’s no requirement that cars make some sort of external noise.
I can see fine and it still creeps me out when I hear only the crunch of tires on the road behind me as I’m walking along…I can only imagine how unnerving it is for the visually-impaired as we head toward mass, mostly silent EVs on the roads.
Also, this concept is wonderfully Blade Runner, so yes please on that alone!
Jack Trade- They typically have a noise when reversing, but I agree that they should make noise when moving forwards, at least up to a speed of around 15-20mph when tires and such will create an ambient sound.
Like that drug dealer in the show ‘Weeds’ said when he borrowed a Prius- “I like that it’s quiet- easy to sneak up on mutthafukkas’.
Or when Andy beat Dwight in their fight over Angela…as Dwight reads his distraction note, back toward the parking lot.
Oscar: “if he stays under 5 mph, Dwight won’t hear him coming…that’s smart.”
There is a sound requirement for hybrid/electric vehicles. There are several requirements both in volume and frequency content, as well as a frequency component that increases with speed. The effective date was 2018 so anything newer than that makes noise up to at least 30 kph. I’ve ran probably hundreds of these tests for different manufacturers.
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/02/26/2018-03721/federal-motor-vehicle-safety-standard-no-141-minimum-sound-requirements-for-hybrid-and-electric
I think it’s a great idea, but I’m in favor of the green lights for the front brakes. Here’s my reasoning: the lights are red in the back because they are telling drivers behind you that they need to stop. They are green on the front because they are telling pedestrians and cross-traffic cars that it’s safe to go in front of you.
Really like this. Just like car dash lights are color-coded!
DarKhorse- I feel like an idiot since I’m only now realizing the logic of that! Makes a lot of sense.
zrpm- I would HIGHLY recommend that you to click on the link to the brochure in the article. Those concepts are packed with crazy features, most of them silly, all of them very 1960s, but a few seem like interesting ideas.
Oh, wow. The instrument panel! The roll-out trunk! This thing is magnificent! A cursory search led me to a decade old forum post claiming that this company originally used Corvairs to build their concepts around and later moved to the Ford Torino chassis. I obviously have no way to verify it but could very much see that being the case from the brochure images. I can’t help but wonder if any of them survived.
zrpm- these Explorers really deserve their own Autopian post. Hopefully I can find more info or Jason will get fired up about them. Certainly worth a deeper dive.
Both those sexy brown 70s beasts should have seen production on looks alone, IMO.
It’s amazing to me that these cars were supposed to show plastics technology but they went way overboard with showing other cool concepts that if anything outshone the body material idea. They’re not a car company so it was just to get attention.
I have absolutely nothing to add to the conversation about the feasibility of front brake lights. I just wanted to note that the Explorer V looks like an AMX and a Toronado had an illicit affair and I absolutely want to adopt their bastard offspring.
Thank you for that: I saw the AMX rear quarter, but couldn’t figure out the front. Toronado indeed in the flare & hub cap.
I see a lot of Ford in it too.
What gets me is there’s all this experimental lighting but it still has red freakin’ rear turn signals. Possibly combined with the rear brake lights.
nlpnt- I am not sure but I think that amber rear signals were banned at that point in the US. I know, it has a green ‘acceleration’ light but that hadn’t been regulated (or even thought of) yet
I love it! I also wonder what those 6″ deep headlight pockets would do to the aerodynamics.