Honda Completes Development of ASV-3 Advanced Safety Vehicles.

Tokyo, Japan, Sept 3, 2005 - (JCN Newswire) - Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today announced it has completed development of Honda ASV-3 Advanced Safety Vehicles equipped to exchange positional information with other vehicles using Inter-Vehicle Communication technology. This was a central objective of the five-year (April 2001-March 2006) Advanced Safety Vehicle (ASV) Project led by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

Honda ASV-3 vehicles are equipped with several new advanced safety technologies developed by Honda, including a system that uses cameras and radar to provide drivers with information on approaching vehicles and obstacles in the road; a system that offers driver support through steering and brake assist; and an emergency response system designed to aid in rescue efforts in the event of an accident. Honda plans to conduct further research and development of technologies deployed in the ASV-3 research vehicles with a view to implementing them in mass production vehicles.

Honda ASV-3 vehicles represent the culmination of five years of progress since the introduction of the previous generation Honda ASV-2 safety technologies in 2000. In addition to image recognition technology used to analyze images captured by on-board cameras, and radar technology used to detect obstacles in the road, ASV-3 vehicles use inter-vehicle communication to ascertain the condition and position of automobiles, motorcycles and pedestrians relative to each other--an especially important capability in situations where cameras and radar alone may be insufficient to gather such data. The system supports motorists'decision-making by rapidly relaying information in a clear, easy-to-understand fashion. This includes audio and visual warnings for motorcycle riders and automobile drivers, and simple tactile signals for drivers such as vibrating the brake or accelerator pedal or applying torque to the steering wheel.

In addition to supporting driver perception, ASV-3 automobiles feature technologies intended to help prevent accidents, and support systems to help drivers avoid accidents by providing steering and brake assists when it is clear that the driver's maneuvers will not be sufficient to avert an accident. Honda has also developed a system that facilitates a speedy "mayday"response in the event of an accident through the exchange of audio and video information between the affected vehicle and an Operation Center, which can then facilitate a rapid response. Honda has applied research on brain function to overcome the fact that a motorcycle's size and shape can make it more difficult for a driver to detect than an automobile. This led to the creation of new motorcycle design concepts aimed at making motorcycles more visible to other motorists.

Honda places the highest priority on safety in the development of motor vehicles. In addition to providing drivers with driver safety training, Honda is proactively pursuing practical solutions in the areas of active safety--accident avoidance; passive safety-- minimizing injuries in the event of an accident, and pre-crash safety--anticipating accidents and mitigating injuries when a collision is unavoidable. Honda has participated in the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport-promoted Advanced Safety Vehicle (ASV) project since Phase 1 (April 1991- March 1996), and in that time has developed and commercialized a number of advanced safety systems such as Honda Intelligent Driver Support System, Collision Mitigation Brake System and Intelligent Night Vision System. Honda ASV-3 technologies feature further advances in active safety and pre-crash safety-progress toward the realization of Honda's goal of achieving "Safety for Everyone" in the real world--for motorcycles, automobiles and pedestrians alike.

Honda is participating in ASV verification trials being conducted by the Ministry from July 4 to October 28, 2005, and plans to take part in the public demonstrations scheduled to be held in Hokkaido October 12-13, 2005.

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