by Cyrus Farivar
02:00 AM Nov. 09, 2005 PT
SAN FRANCISCO — Normally, automobiles in the parking lot of SBC Park remain more or less stationary. But this week, cars are communicating with each other, parallel parking themselves and employing automatic, radar-based braking.
The 12th Annual World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, being held through Thursday, is showcasing some of the newest advances in automotive technology and offering glimpses at what the future might hold.
Toyota displayed some of the most impressive demonstrations at the show, including its Intelligent Parking Assist, currently available in Japan and Europe. Toyota officials said these add-ons will likely be released in the United States in 2006.
“The idea is to reduce the driver’s workload,” said Toyota engineer Masato Okuda, who demonstrated the Intelligent Parking Assist on a Prius. An ultra-wide-angle miniature camera is mounted in the back of the car, just above the license plate.
When the driver moves into position to begin parallel parking and puts the car in reverse, a rear view comes up on the Prius’ standard dashboard screen, displaying the available spot. The screen also uses the painted parking lines as guidelines and draws its own lines over them on the display — similar to how television sports commentators draw on top of an image.
