About seven billion people in the world take to the road every day. It is our aim to make future mobility as safe as possible for all of these people. As a pioneer in matters of safety, this aim involves doing all we can to make our "Road to Accident-free Driving" a reality. Daimler engineers are invariably ahead of their time when it comes to vehicle safety development. Our primary objective is to prevent accidents from happening in the first place.
We are the pioneers in road safety.
Daimler is synonymous with automotive safety. This tradition is closely associated with the name Béla Barenyis who shaped automotive history with innovations such as the crumple zone and the passenger safety cell.
Mercedes-Benz pursues a comprehensive integral safety concept which combines a multitude of intelligent technologies for extensive protection. It is divided into four phases of mobility and with special solutions for each phase it increases the safety of the passengers and other road users: from safety when driving and safety in hazardous situations to protection in the event of an accident and the minimisation of the effects of an accident. Many of the safety technologies which are today taken for granted as an essential part of any car were developed by Mercedes-Benz. These include the safety passenger compartment with crumple zones, the airbag and the belt tensioners. And Mercedes vehicles were the first to be equipped with the anti-lock braking system (ABS) and the Electronic Stability Program (ESP®). The concept of foresighted safety technologies has been behind the creation of many technologies at Mercedes-Benz.
Safety, from a new perspective.
Our integrated safety philosophy has four components:
- Prevent
- Response
- Protect
- Rescue
Prevention
Active safety technologies help prevent accidents. Systems such as ESP® and Brake Assist have been playing a major part in enhancing road safety for a number of years.
Continuous further development and new active safety systems, specially developed to prevent dangerous situations, are making motoring increasingly safer: Lane Keeping Assist systems for passenger cars and trucks help to prevent one of the most frequent causes of accidents, namely the vehicle leaving its lane.
The ATTENTION ASSIST drowsiness detection system for passenger cars can provide warnings if the driver shows signs of fatigue. Proximity control systems for passenger cars and commercial vehicles help the driver to remain the desired distance behind the vehicle in front. Special light systems maximize visibility at any time of day or night and in any weather. If the vehicle performs an emergency stop, the adaptive brake lights for passenger cars and vans start flashing quickly to warn.
Response
Daimler-developed systems such as ESP® and ABS, which can intervene to stabilise the vehicle if it starts to skid or needs to brake in an emergency, are already key components of modern vehicles all over the world. Our advanced safety technology can detect typical imminent danger in advance and activates protective measures.
Equivalent systems are integrated in Daimler commercial vehicles. Active Brake Assist initiates emergency braking of a bus or truck if the system detects that a collision with a vehicle in front appears to be unavoidable. Telligent systems provide stability and proximity control, while Lane Keeping Assist prevents the heavy vehicle from leaving its lane.
Protect
We launched two of our pioneering innovations – the stiff passenger cell and the crumple zone – some 50 years ago. Since then, we have been constantly optimising our vehicles’ body components. So much so that more than 70 percent of them are now made from high-strength or ultra-high-strength steel.
Airbags and inertia-reel seat belts have become crucial to occupant protection, of course. Mercedes-Benz vehicles are fitted with up to nine airbags, while inertia-reel seat belts with adaptive belt force limiters ensure that occupants are loaded still less in the event of an impact. In the event of a rear impact, the padded areas of the NECK-PRO head restraints are moved within fractions of a second into a position more favorable on accident conditions to reduce the risk of whiplash injuries.But Daimler does not just think about the occupants of its own vehicles. The carmaker also take into account all other road users. For instance, the Active Bonnet enhances pedestrian safety as it is raised up to 50 millimetres practically instantaneously in the event of an accident. The deformation space is increased, while the risk of injury is reduced. Likewise, the underride guards we fit on our trucks help to protect other road users.
Rescue
In the event of an accident, technologies from Mercedes-Benz help to ensure that the right course of action is taken. Crash-responsive emergency lighting in passenger cars provide the necessary light in the occupant compartment to facilitate appropriate action by all those involved after a crash in the dark. An automatic E-call function shortens the wait before the emergency services arrive on the scene.An automatic E-call shortens the time until rescuers arrive. And thorough training of rescue workers makes it possible, on the one hand, to tend optimally to the persons involved in the accident and, on the other hand, enables rescuers to work both efficiently and safely.