Stereo cameras detect danger! Hitachi Astemo’s latest technologies improve safety and comfort [EICMA 2024]

Hitachi Astemo unveiled a concept model of a motorcycle ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance System) using a forward-detection stereo camera at EICMA 2022. Since then, the company has continued to evolve the concept, and at EICMA 2024, it unveiled and exhibited the latest version.

In its first year of operation, the company developed a motorcycle-specific ADAS unit that integrates a forward-detection stereo camera and an ADAS ECU based on its automobile ADAS unit. The unit combines safety features such as an automatic deceleration system and automatic braking, which detects hazards ahead and automatically releases the accelerator or brakes, with comfort features such as the ability to adjust suspension characteristics in real time, a feature unique to electronically controlled suspensions, and adaptive cruise control (ACC). Furthermore, in consideration of installation in small-displacement commuter vehicles, which are becoming mainstream in Asia and the ASEAN region, where sales are continuing to grow, the company also unveiled a simplified ADAS that links a stereo camera with an ABS unit and an FI control unit to provide braking support and hazard recognition. At EICMA 2023, the company also announced the distributed placement of the stereo camera and ADAS ECU, as well as the ability to separate the two cameras and mount them on the vehicle, similar to a twin-lens headlight, significantly improving vehicle mountability.

At EICMA 2024, the company demonstrated how its stereo camera performs forward detection. A camera mounted on a demo vehicle captured and tracked visitors passing in front of the booth, displaying the distance to them in real time on a demonstration monitor. During actual driving, the vehicle identified information such as vehicles traveling ahead, obstacles, lane lines, and road signs, and sent it to a control unit, which then sent warning signals to the rider and provided driving support in conjunction with control technologies such as speed management.

A road detection function has been added as a new technology to this ADAS. In Southeast Asia and Europe, speed bumps are installed across roads to limit speeds in urban areas. The aim is to improve driving safety in urban areas by detecting these bumps with a camera and controlling the speed or providing information to the rider.

Hitachi Astemo’s electronically controlled suspension, SHOWA EERA, has also evolved further, becoming the Gen2 version. At EICMA 2023, the company announced that by incorporating the control board for the actuator that varies the damping force into the rear suspension unit and incorporating a G-sensor into that control board, it has eliminated the need for the suspension control ECU and stroke sensor that were previously installed separately. This not only makes it possible to install electronically controlled suspension systems in small and medium-displacement vehicles, which require cost competitiveness, but also offers the benefits of electronically controlling only the rear suspension.

At EICMA 2024, the control unit will also be installed on the front fork, making it possible to use the system not only as a front and rear suspension alone, but also as a front and rear set, making it possible to install an electronically controlled suspension system on vehicles with a wide range of characteristics and price ranges.

The SHOWA EERA’s additional function, HEIGHTFLEX, which automatically adjusts the vehicle height by detecting when the vehicle stops or starts, has also been improved. It can now be equipped with a gear pump type suspension spring adjuster. At EICMA 2023, a gear pump type spring adjuster was used in the rear shock unit, but at EICMA 2024, a similar pump unit was also built into the front fork.

The advantage of the gear pump spring adjuster is that it can operate at high frequency and speed, completing the lift in 5 to 7 seconds. At the EICMA 2024 venue, a demonstration vehicle was also prepared where visitors could experience the lift.

The concept model of a new suspension and brake system jointly developed with SHOWA and NISSIN also attracted attention. The brake caliper is connected to a single leg extending from the bottom case of the inverted fork. In addition to reducing weight, the cooling effect has been improved by the cavity under the bottom case and the cooling fan designed into the brake caliper.

The logo designed on the bottom case and caliper is an arrangement of the letter “A,” and is a new symbol mark for high-performance products, with “SHOWA” for suspension and “NISSIN” for brakes, which offer even higher added value. The logos for NISSIN and SHOWA have also been changed. The new logo will be used first at races.