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Soft Car 360 More Forgiving Crash Target for ADAS Testing
When things seem likely to get a little out of control, it is better to test crash-avoidance systems with something other than a real car.
2 Min Read
The AB Dynamics Soft Car 360 ADAS sensor target vehicle.Photo used by permission of AB Dynamics – www.abdynamics.com
“If everything seems under control, you aren’t going fast enough.” Mario Andretti observed this about the speed of race cars, but the same holds true of developing and engineering new cars. We’re trying to go as quickly as possible, and in our tests, there might be the occasional crash.
This is where AB Dynamics comes it. The company’s Soft Car 360 is a crushable target for testing Automatic Emergency Braking systems developed for new cars, so in the event the system fails to recognize the target car and brake, the test car doesn’t smash into a hard target and get damaged. This is obviously especially important for testing with live drivers aboard the test car.
AB Dynamics describes the Soft Car 360 as “an oversized go-kart with electric drive and GPS.” Actually, it is the company’s GST 120 robotic platform covered with foam pieces held together with hook-and-loop fasteners and wrapped in a vinyl skin. The remotely piloted platform lets the Soft Car 360 move like a real car at speeds as high as 75 mph while providing a realistic-looking target vehicle for testing sensor systems on cars under development.
The Soft Car 360 has radar-reflective material in its bumpers, doors, and hood, while the “lights” and number places are made of reflective material. This gives the foam target car the appearance of a real car to camera, radar, lidar, infrared, and laser sensors.
“The vehicle is built of crushable pillows,” observed Daimler test engineer Hans-Peter Schoner. “It has a huge collapsible zone. It is possible to crush the surface. It can drive scenarios when we aren’t confident our development vehicles will avoid collisions.”
It works well enough that Soft Car 360 has been the test target for Euro NCAP safety testing since 2018. It is just the thing for when everything does not seem to be under control, to paraphrase Andretti.
A test car approaches the AB Dynamics Soft Car 360 to test its Automatic Emergency Braking.
About the Author
Dan’s coverage of the auto industry over three decades has taken him to the racetracks, automotive engineering centers, vehicle simulators, wind tunnels, and crash-test labs of the world.
A member of the North American Car, Truck, and Utility of the Year jury, Dan also contributes car reviews to Popular Science magazine, serves on the International Engine of the Year jury, and has judged the collegiate Formula SAE competition.
Dan is a winner of the International Motor Press Association's Ken Purdy Award for automotive writing, as well as the National Motorsports Press Association's award for magazine writing and the Washington Automotive Press Association's Golden Quill award.
Dan, testing the 2025 Aston Martin Vanquish. ANDY MORGAN/ASTON MARTIN
He has held a Sports Car Club of America racing license since 1991, is an SCCA National race winner, two-time SCCA Runoffs competitor in Formula F, and an Old Dominion Region Driver of the Year award winner. Co-drove a Ford Focus 1.0-liter EcoBoost to 16 Federation Internationale de l’Automobile-accredited world speed records over distances from just under 1km to over 4,104km at the CERAM test circuit in Mortefontaine, France.
He was also a longtime contributor to the Society of Automotive Engineers' Automotive Engineering International magazine.
He specializes in analyzing technical developments, particularly in the areas of motorsports, efficiency, and safety.
He has been published in The New York Times, NBC News, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, The Washington Post, Hagerty, AutoTrader.com, Maxim, RaceCar Engineering, AutoWeek, Virginia Living, and others.
Dan has authored books on the Honda S2000 and Dodge Viper sports cars and contributed automotive content to the consumer finance book, Fight For Your Money.
He is a member and past president of the Washington Automotive Press Association and is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers.
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