When absent-minded parents leave their children locked inside a car, the results can be deadly, especially on a hot summer day. Now Great Wall Motors, China’s biggest SUV maker, wants to prevent that by checking for vital signs in new cars.
Once the vehicle engine is turned off and all doors are locked, the system uses millimeter-wave radar to scan for signs of life inside the car compartment, according to the company. Research has shown that these high frequency electromagnetic waves can detect a heartbeat and respiration in humans and animals. An alarm will sound if someone is believed to be trapped in the car, and the car owner will get a notification either via an app or SMS.
Children are especially susceptible to vehicular heatstroke because their body temperature rises faster than adults, according to the US National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. Data from NoHeatStroke.org, run by San Jose State University, shows that an average of 39 kids have died in the US each year since 1998 after being left in a hot car.