Honda Unveils its New ‘SENSING 360' Omnidirectional Safety & Advanced Driver Assist System

author: Eric Walz   

Honda Motor Co. unveiled its new "SENSING 360" omnidirectional safety and driver assist system on Wednesday. The safety technology removes blind spots around the vehicle and helps avoid all types of collisions, as well as reducing the burden on the driver.

The latest version offers improvements over the previous system that was first introduced in 2014, according to Honda. SENSING 360 features an expanded sensing range not only in the front and rear, but all around the vehicle for 360 degrees of coverage, hence the name.

The system will be available on new Honda vehicles launching in the China market beginning in 2022. It will eventually expand to all Honda models in major global markets by 2030.

Honda has been pursuing the research and development of new and advanced safety technologies, including hardware and software as part of its "Safety for Everyone" initiative.

Honda SENSING 360 includes a total of five millimeter-wave radars in front and at each corner of the vehicle. The system is further bolstered by a monocular camera, which is used  in the current version of Honda SENSING. 

This expanded sensing range covers all blind spots around the vehicle, which are normally difficult for the driver to visually check on their own. It helps drivers to avoid collisions with other vehicles and pedestrians.  

For the development of Honda SENSING 360, the automaker said it leveraged its knowledge from the research and development of Level 3 automated driving technologies. Honda is striving for zero traffic collision fatalities by 2050 and is adding advanced safety features to reach its goal.

Key features of Honda's SENSING 360

SENSING 360 includes Advancement of Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS). When a driver attempts to make a left or right turn at an intersection, the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) will automatically kick in whenever it detects other vehicles or pedestrians. 

The system to assist the driver in the avoidance and mitigation of a collision with another vehicle or pedestrian entering an intersection at the same time from different directions with 360 degrees of perception coverage around the vehicle.

Another key feature is Front Cross Traffic Warning.  When the vehicle is driving at low speeds or starting from a stop at an intersection, the system notifies the driver of vehicles approaching to cross the intersection from the left, right and front. When it recognizes the risk of a collision with the crossing vehicle, the system provides audio warnings and visual warnings on the instrument cluster to alert the driver and help avoid a collision.

For highway driving, Honda's SENSING 360 offers Lane Change Collision Mitigation. The system monitors blind spots when changing lanes. It looks out for other vehicle inajcent lanes of when a vehicle is approaching from behind. If another vehicle is present, the system provides audio warnings and visual warnings to alert the driver. It can also momentarily take over steering to help avoid a collision.

SENSING 360 also includes Active Lane Change Assist (ALCA). When a driver is using Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Low-Speed Follow and the Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS) activated, the system assists with steering for the lane change when the left or right turn signal is activated by the driver, but only when it's safe to do so.

Other highway driving features include adjusting vehicle speed automatically and steering in turns when using adaptive cruise control. Using a forward-facing camera, the system detects the curvature of the lane before reaching the curve and assists the driver to complete smooth cornering. 

Unlike Tesla's Full Self Driving (FSD) and other systems that are designed to support level 2 autonomous driving, Honda's SENSING 360 is more like an assistant for the driver. by constantly looking out for hazards that a human driver might miss. 

Honda also releases a series of videos that detail how some of the new safety features work, which we shared below. 

Eric Walz

Originally hailing from New Jersey, Eric is a automotive & technology reporter covering the high-tech industry here in Silicon Valley. He has over 15 years of automotive experience and a bachelors degree in computer science. These skills, combined with technical writing and news reporting, allows him to fully understand and identify new and innovative technologies in the auto industry and beyond. He has worked at Uber on self-driving cars and as a technical writer, helping people to understand and work with technology.