Ford Motor Company has filed a patent for a large animal detection system that may be used in future Ford vehicles, Ford Authority has learned.
The patent was filed on January 30th, 2023, published on August 1st, 2024, and assigned serial number 0253652.
The Ford Authority Take
In recent months, Ford has filed a handful of patents aimed at preventing different types of crashes or other incidents, all from ideas for features such as a vehicular wrong way travel detection system, a system capable of detecting the presence of trains, and a pothole avoidance detection system. Now, this newly published patent keeps that trend going, this time, by exploring a way that future Ford vehicles could detect the presence of large animals such as deer.
This proposed system would utilize a thermal camera capable of detecting large objects such as animals, even in dark conditions. The system would also be able to predict the trajectory of that animal, and if it determines that it’s likely the animal will strike the vehicle, it could then intervene accordingly – whether that means steering out of the way or slowing the vehicle down automatically to prevent an accident from occurring.
Such an idea certainly has a lot of merit, given the fact that a recent study found that around 2.1 million deer-on-vehicle collisions occur annually – causing more than $10 billion in economic losses each year, as well as around 59,000 injuries and 440 deaths. This doesn’t even include other types of large animals that cars tend to hit regularly, whether that be bears or moose – meaning that a special system like this could help quite literally save lives, not to mention a lot of money.
We’ll have more on this and all Ford patents soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for the latest Ford patent news, Ford business news, and ongoing Ford news coverage.
Comment
I hit a cow while driving a 1974 Rambler. The cow was hurt and limped away but my Rambler suffered no damage to its steel bumper. Modern cars would snash the bumper if it hit a cow.