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M&S fleet trials surround view camera system

Telematics
Marks & Spencer is trialling a 360-degree camera system to assess the benefits of single-image surround view system on rigid trucks – and to establish whether it could be extended to articulated vehicles.
The Backeye360 Elite system, from Brigade Electronics and ASL Vision, has undergone an initial trial with the retailer and is now being extended to 15 more trucks. The system uses four ultrawide-angle camera lenses mounted on the vehicle to capture all blind spots. Simultaneous digital images are processed and 'video stitched', giving a real-time, bird's-eye view on the driver's monitor. The single-image surround view makes it easier for the driver to see possible hazards and take corrective action quickly, if required. More than half of collisions on the M&S fleet happen during slow-speed manoeuvring or with parked or stationary objects. "My first impression of the technology was that it must be able to help us," says Tony Whitehouse, M&S fleet manager. "But, of course, the only measure of this will be if we see a significant reduction in the frequency and cost of collisions that we currently experience."

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