A couple of years ago, I had a deer run into the side of my Tacoma and do a few thousand dollars worth of damage (I'm guessing about the $ value, it broke off the mirror and dented every part of the truck on the driver's side, I replaced the mirror, but never had the rest of the damage fixed). This happened in northern Wyoming on I-90 in the pre-dawn hours. Although, I tell everyone the deer hit me, rather than the other way around, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been able to stop, if it had run in front of the truck, rather than into the side of it. Ever since then, I've been very hesitant to drive when the sun is not above the horizon. Almost all my friends and relatives that live out West have had at least one run-in with a deer, almost always when it is dark outside. Now with the TSS system, I've been pressing my luck a bit, hoping that my car will react a little quicker than I can, should a deer cross in front of me. Can anyone reading this confirm by way of personal experience that the Pedestrian Detection system will help if a deer or other large animal gets in front of the car while traveling?
I think I saw a YouTube video on this somewhere showing the Prius in a favourable light. Sorry, I can't find it now for you, but there are several Toyota videos covering pedestrian detection with DRCC. I hope @Tideland Prius can chip in with info.
No. TSS-P is not designed to detect animals. I think Volvo is working on a system that will detect animals but for now, I believe none of the detection systems include animal. Would Toyota's Safety Sense's anti-collision stop for a deer? | PriusChat @Paradox confirmed it with Toyota. @RCO , this one? Gen 4 Prius Moose Test | PriusChat Or this one?
The deer I have encountered (only ticked a hoof on a fender so far) have been moving very fast compared to human pedestrians, jumping in from outside the field of view of any detectors designed for human obstacles.
Thanks for the info. I didn't realize detection would depend on the system recognizing shapes, as the quote you referenced made clear. I was under the impression it would be dependant on size and mass. I will go back to limiting my driving through the countryside to daylight hours, as much as possible.
Apparently, this guy appears no better than the TSS-P in telling a deer from a person. Western NY hunter mistakes neighbor for deer, fatally shoots her | Newsday
Apparently VOLVO stalled on the animal detection when they realised we have ... kangaroos This is a small one: And police aren't exempt - and Kangaroos jump HIGH:
Thanks @Tideland Prius. That might have been the kind of video I'd seen and confused my couple of brain cells.
I still think moose are best at destruction. Very heavy, very high (but they don't jump ). They have been known to derail trains! Oh, and just because you drive in the daylight, don't think you won't find a deer on the road. I narrowly missed two that were scared out the bushes by a train passing!
Yes. In the manual, if there is a group of people, TSS-P may not detect that as a person because a group of people isn't shaped like a person. The system is basically designed to avoid/reduce impact of collisions with a pedestrian that darts out onto the street type of scenario.
