Due to the troubles at many international airports, more people will probably go on holiday with a car this summer. For some, however, such a trip can end in tragedy. Every year, children and pets die from heat stroke after being left behind by a driver in a car in which the temperature inside can quickly exceed the outside temperature. Ford has now developed technology that can help prevent this. Rear Occupant Alert provides the driver with a simple reminder to check the rear seats if the rear doors were opened at the start of the journey.
Ice baby video shows risks
To emphasize the dangers of a hot interior, Ford commissioned an ice sculptor to create an "ice baby" and an "ice dog" which were then placed in a car at Ford's "weather factory" in Cologne. Outside the car, the temperature was set at 35°C. But inside the car, the temperature had risen to 19°C within 50 minutes and the ice sculptures started melting immediately.
The professional ice sculptor created the image of a 12-month-old baby sucking on a pacifier and holding a toy, and that of a large Labrador wearing a collar, sitting in a crate in the back of a Ford Focus Wagon. At the test site where Ford usually puts its models through a variety of climatic tests, the effect of global warming on a car became clear. Short-wave radiation penetrates the interior through the windows, is reflected by the seats and heats the car.
Rear Occupant Alert is introduced at a time when pet ownership has boomed. For example, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, 3,2 million households in the UK have purchased a pet.
How Rear Occupant Alert works
Experts advise drivers to check the car carefully before locking the car, in order to prevent a child or pet from being accidentally left in the car. Rear Occupant Alert reminds the driver that he has opened a rear door before departure. In such a case, the technology is activated after the car has stopped and the ignition is switched off.
A visual warning appears in the car's central display. The warning will be displayed for ten seconds, or shorter if turned off. An audible signal also sounds to remind the driver to check the rear seat before getting out. The system
Not only does it warn of the presence of a child or animal, but it can also remind a driver that something as valuable as a laptop or handbag has been left in the back seat that could lead to a car break-in if left behind.
In Europe, this technology is installed on the following models: EcoSport, Fiesta, Focus, Kuga, Mondeo, Puma, Transit and Tourneo Connect. The technology is also present on the new all-electric Mustang Mach-E, which includes even more clever features in the optional glass roof – which runs the length of the interior. Thanks to a special glass coating, the interior stays cooler in summer and warmer in winter. In addition, a special layer has been applied to the glass that provides protection against ultraviolet radiation.
Stay in the car
According to the advocacy group KidsandCars.org, being left in a car, climbing into a car and accidentally getting locked up are the major risks for children of dying from hyperthermia (heatstroke). The organization points out that a child's body overheats three to five times faster than an adult's. In the US, there are an average of 39 deaths each year, which equates to one every nine days. Such incidents are less common in Europe. However, deaths have been reported in Ireland, France and Belgium, with passers-by sometimes taking matters into their own hands in an effort to prevent tragedy.
Hot weather can also be dangerous for pets left in a vehicle. Between 2009 and 2018, 64.443 incidents involving animals exposed to heat were reported to the RSPCA in England and Wales. RSPCA Australia says six minutes in a hot car is fatal for a dog Ford.
Photo above: Ford image bank.
