Volvo Cars rewarded for putting safety first
Two of Volvo Cars’ top safety experts, Dr Trent Victor (senior technical leader crash avoidance and adjunct professor at University of Iowa, US) and Jonas Ekmark (manager: innovation for active safety and chassis), have been recognised for their contributions in the field of car safety.
The awards, presented by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at the 24th International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV) were in recognition of and appreciation for extraordinary contributions in the field of motor vehicle safety.
Dr Victor, an internationally recognised safety expert, has worked in the field for over 20 years. In that time he has filed more than 20 patents and published over 60 papers on the subject, while establishing a unique track record of applying behavioural science data to crash avoidance innovation. He is currently focusing on minimising the risks of inattention or distraction caused by infotainment systems using eye-movement monitoring, designing crash-avoidance active safety systems and autonomous drive functionality.
Jonas Ekmark, who has demonstrated both imagination and foresight in his work in developing safety systems has a résumé full of world first inventions and applications that have gone a long way in further cementing Volvo Cars’ position as a global leader in car safety. Since 1994 Ekmark has registered more than 30 patents in his work for Volvo Cars.
His achievements include the development and application of auto-braking systems aimed at either reducing or avoiding potential collisions. Initially his work focused on collisions with other vehicles, but that has now expanded to include pedestrians, cyclists and animals. Ekmark also continues to play an important role in the development of autonomous-drive system development and connectivity-based safety data-sharing projects.
“I am really honoured and happy to receive this recognition for the work we do here at Volvo Cars. Our focus is, as ever, people. Our long-term vision is to design cars that do not crash. The development of self-driving technology is an important step towards that vision. Awards such as these let us know that we are capable of making a difference – and that is very satisfying,”
said Ekmark.
