Denso is not just Toyota's supplier anymore - 0 views
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banking on brisk demand for safety sensors with plans to offer a suite of new products for mass-market cars by 2016.
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The new technologies will include autonomous emergency braking, lane-keep assist and full-speed adaptive cruise control systems
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And in a bid to diversify its customer base, the Toyota-affiliated parts maker will offer the new products to any automaker, not just its tried-and-true Toyota Group stalwarts.
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The upcoming rollout, which will deploy the technologies by March 31, 2016, is part of Denso's drive to boost sales of sensors, the crucial eyes and ears of tomorrow's safety systems.
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Cars without these features will be hard-pressed to achieve the top five-star rating. And European adoption of more stringent rules is expected to force other markets, such as the United States and Japan, to raise the bar as well.
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But it trails European rivals such as Robert Bosch GmBH and Continental AG in advanced safety sensors. Denso's bread-and-butter products are drivetrain components and air conditioners.
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But deployment is rapidly moving downmarket because of stricter European Union safety rules taking effect in 2015. The Euro New Car Assessment Program, or Euro NCAP, rates vehicle safety and increasingly will test for crash avoidance technologies.
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The components include systems using camera-based optical sensors, millimeter wave radar and laser radar.
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That is because the regulations set a baseline for sensor performance that must be met by all carmakers. And the clear specifications make it easier to develop standardized sensors. Standardization, in turn, allows for higher volume and lower costs, meaning a wider array of customers can use the same part.