kick in

Advanced Safety Vehicleへの流れはとまりません。今度は衝突回避システムです。
kick inが面白いですね。「作動する」（「そういう状態になる」、「介入する」）という意味ですが、ブレーキなのでまさにkick in (cf. apply, step, activate)です。こうしたASVはこれから標準装備となっていくでしょう。（GP）

http://d.hatena.ne.jp/A30/20121019/1350619314

Race on among car manufacturers to develop collision-avoidance systems

The race to develop safety systems that reflect a shift in thinking from damage minimization to accident prevention is heating up among Japanese car manufacturers.

Toyota Motor Corp. demonstrated a collision-avoidance system that its new sedan models will soon come equipped with at Higashi-Fuji Technical Center in Susono, Shizuoka Prefecture, on Nov. 12. Using radar, a car equipped with the system can detect the car in front, and as the cars get closer and the possibility of a collision rises, the automatic braking system kicks in and stops the car before it hits the one in front of it.

Other auto manufacturers already employ similar automatic braking systems, but most presuppose a speed differential of 30 kilometers per hour or less between the car equipped with the system and the car ahead of it. Under such systems, collisions cannot be avoided unless the differential is within that range. Toyota's system, however, is effective at speed differentials of up to 60 kilometers per hour. Since at least 90 percent of rear-enders take place within differentials of 60 kilometers per hour, Toyota says its auto braking system can prevent most such crashes.

The increased push for such safety systems can be traced back to the popularity of EyeSight, a collision-avoidance system that Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. put on the market in May 2010. A pair of cameras detects obstacles and pedestrians in front of the car, and automatically brings the car to a stop. While it's a stand-alone option and costs 105,000 yen, there's a high demand for it -- close to 90 percent of Legacy models sold in September were equipped with the system.

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20121118p2a00m0na003000c.html