New symbols added to the Crash Recovery System
Developments in the vehicle industry continue at a constant speed. Vehicles with alternative propulsion, in particular the electric variants, follow each other in rapid succession. These new propulsion variants often present unique challenges for emergency services.
To better inform the emergency services, we have developed several new symbols in recent months. Some of these symbols are added to all new vehicles, and some are mainly focused on alternative propulsion, a specific database category or are only added to special vehicles.
The following components are added to all new vehicles:
- Lifting Points
- Air conditioning system
- Fire extinguishing system
LIFTING POINTS
Displaying lifting points was already included in the Crash Recovery System for buses. However, we have also added this for passenger cars, trucks, special vehicles and recently added new databases. Up until now, the lifting points for buses were not interactive. With the latest software update, the symbol for lifting points is interactive, allowing us to provide more information on lifting the vehicle.
AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM
The air conditioning system is displayed in the new menu displayed on the left side of the CRS rescuesheet for all vehicles except buses. The location of air conditioning units for buses will be displayed on the roof. Displaying the location for buses is a great added value for emergency responders as they differ per variant and version. We will offer information about the air conditioning fluids used and specific points of attention for first responders.
FIRE EXTINGUISHING SYSTEM
A fire extinguishing system has been mandatory for buses since 2017. For emergency responders, activating such a system in the event of a fire can be of great value in extinguishing the fire in time. For buses, we will show the location where this system can be activated. In addition, we will add this system to special vehicles such as the Opel Corsa-e Rally in which a fire extinguishing system is present.
The following components are only added to vehicles with alternative propulsion systems:
- Location charging cable
- Electric door handles
LOCATION CHARGING CABLE
Vehicles with an electric or plug-in hybrid propulsion system are regularly parked at a charging point for charging the high-voltage battery. Several situations have already occurred where emergency services want to disconnect these vehicles from the charging cable. The charging cables are locked on both the vehicle side and the charging station side. Very effective against theft but a challenge for the emergency responders in need of disconnecting the cable. The new CRS ‘charging-cable-symbol’ will provide information about releasing the charging cable through the normal procedure and the emergency procedure.
ELECTRIC DOOR HANDLES
Today’s vehicles are more and more equipped with door handles that retract into the body during driving. These handles often pose a challenge for the emergency services in case of an accident when they need to enter the vehicle quickly. With the new symbol, we will show the emergency procedure to open the door handle or door.
The following components are only added to trucks:
- Air intake
AIR INTAKE
In the category ‘trucks’, we have added information about the air intake to the ‘start-stop-symbol’ to indicate the location for the CO2 injection that serves to stall the engine. We provide information about the different ways to turn off the truck. The location for the injection is separately shown in the left menu with the ‘air-inlet-symbol’. It provides information about the location of the air inlet.
