Your 2-Minute Guide to Vehicle Parking Assist Systems | Cars and Trucks

By JasonLancaster
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Vehicles of virtually every type and make have been steadily growing over the past ten years. "Entry level" cars by companies like BMW are almost the same size nowadays as a mid-size car from a decade ago. One of the consequences of vehicle sizes expanding is that parking now is harder than ever.

The vehicle growth spurt is most visible in the pickup truck segment, where even such "small" trucks as the Dodge Dakota are now so big that they dwarf earlier models. Full-size trucks too have grown, getting heavier, wider and taller. Toyota vehicles have followed this market trend. When it was first introduced, the Toyota Tundra was a mid-size pickup aimed at the full-size crowd. But when Toyota realized they could fit more buyers in a larger vehicle, the 2007 Tundra redesign ballooned the truck in almost every dimension.

The downside of bigger vehicles is that parking is now a lot harder than it was before. When driving a new Toyota Tundra, you may notice it's difficult to tell where the truck begins and ends. As a solution to these new parking woes, vehicle designers have developed a new tool for drivers called "parking assist."

The "parking assist" is a system of sensors that on most vehicles will be mounted on either front or rear bumpers, or both. The sensors emit an audible beep when the vehicle gets too close to an obstacle, beginning from about 6 feet away, depending on the system, and increasing in frequency until becoming a continuous tone at about 6 inches away. The system can help drivers parallel park, and warn them if something small, such as a mailbox or child, is near the vehicle. If you're curious about how the "parking assist" works, read on.

Basically, a set of eyes are mounted in the vehicle's bumpers. These "eyes", or special sensors, transmit highly focused sound waves at regular intervals from the bumper. When these sound waves come into contact with a solid object, they reflect back towards the sensor. Since the speed of sound is fairly constant through air, a computer uses the time it took for the reflection to be returned in order to calculate the distance between the bumper and the object. This is exactly the same principle employed by submarines using active sonar underwater, except that water transmits the sound waves much better than air, allowing for better range.

The system is effective with detecting stationary objects such as other vehicles, posts and garage doors, but is not sensitive enough to reliably detect smaller moving objects, such as animals, all-terrain vehicles, or children. These small objects might not generate a consistent warning beep, or even any warning at all. Thus, although parking assist systems, also called parking sonar, may be a great tool for parking, they cannot replace driver caution. It's still up to drivers to check that there is no one in the way of their vehicle as they park.

Some high-end luxury cars are beginning to feature the next generation of parking assist systems, which are amazing devices. A video camera and complex computer program are used to enhance the accuracy of traditional sound sensors. Instead of simply emitting warnings when the driver is close to an object, the newer parking assist systems can actually steer and park the car for you. This is an amazing tool for parallel parking - as long as you're ready to give your car control of the steering, gas and brake. Whatever will they dream up next?

About the Author

Author Jason Lancaster operates TundraHeadquarters.com, a web site with info, news, and reviews of Toyota Tundra parts and Tundra accessories.

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