[335iPaul]

From Crave:

If you've ever had a tired cyclist--or worse, a tired driver--careen into your car door as you open it, you'll appreciate a new prototype being developed in Germany. It's a new technology that lets doors resist being opened when they sense an oncoming hazard.

BMW's Michael Graf and a team at the Technical University of Munich are pioneering the project, which uses ultrasonic sensors to detect hazards approaching a vehicle. When they see an oncoming cyclist, or van, or bears, a bar running through the car door prevents it from being opened.
So far, the results of tests have been positive, reports New Scientist, and the technology is apparently at the stage where it could be rolled out in vehicles within 12 months. Co-developer BMW, however, has not decided whether its future cars will use the system. Perhaps instead it will be licensed to other manufacturers.

Whatever the eventuality, we look forward to seeing the technology in vehicles soon. Or maybe we could just arrest cyclists who ignore red lights. No, really.

In the future, similar technology might be able to detect when fingers are within chopping range, we'd hope. The trapping of fingers in doors and car trunks, while traditionally a hazard addressed with the good old-fashioned looking-where-your-damn-hands-are method, feels like a perfect challenge for this kind of sensory technology to tackle.

[carve]

Damn- I was hoping it would be a way to call out door-dingers.

Tired drivers and cyclists? Yeah...OK....whatever....you're right....it's their fault you opened your door right in front of them.

[JeepJeep]

I can see all the teenage girls who get BMW's really needing this... but then getting angry at the door because it wont open, even though it just saved them.

[E90330iS]

cool

[Oulixes]

Originally Posted by 335iPaul

From Crave:

This is just a New Scientist article. We can hope it was just a space filler yarn and will be ignored, but one never knows.

[Master Deep]

What if you are in some kind of emergency and need to get the door open but the system is preventing it from being opened?

[JeepJeep]

Originally Posted by Master Deep

What if you are in some kind of emergency and need to get the door open but the system is preventing it from being opened?

You didn't think this question through did you...

[BlackSheep343]

Originally Posted by JeepJeep

I can see all the teenage girls who get BMW's really needing this... but then getting angry at the door because it wont open, even though it just saved them.

Haha very nice, i agree.