As heat temperature rises outside, personal items, pets and specially children can suffer from blistering heat when left inside a vehicle. General Motors Corporation (GMC) has resolved that problem by introducing the dependable 'Rear Seat Reminder,' a feature that prompts drivers to look at their rear seat before exiting their car, Autonews reports.
In a statement made by GMC, "The feature -- designed, engineered in-house and patented by GM -- works by monitoring the Acadia's rear doors. It's intended to activate when either rear door is opened and closed within 10 minutes before the vehicle is started, or if they are opened and closed while the vehicle is running."
AUTOCAR Professional stated that the Rear Seat Reminder will debut as a standard feature on GMC's redesigned 2017 Acadia SUV, which will be available in the US. Though it doesn't detect items or people, it does alert the driver when the second-row door is closed or opened.
When this feature is turned off, the driver will be reminded by a message depicted on the driver information screen which would read, "Rear Seat Reminder Look in Rear Seat," accompanied by five audible chimes to check the Acadia's second-row. GMC also stated their intention of integrating the Rear Seat Reminder technology to their other vehicles, but did not provide specific nameplates.
The Department of Meteorology and Climate Science of San Jose State University addressed that vehicular heat stroke caused the death of twenty-four children in 2015. Based on their research regarding the 661 children who died from vehicular heatstroke since 1998, 54 percent of those incidents were due to negligence or the child was left inside the vehicle.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) consumer website Safercar.gov stated that temperature of a vehicle can rise above 20 degrees Fahrenheit in just 10 minutes. That even the temperature outside is 60 degrees, the temperature inside a car can reach to 110 degrees, enough to kill a child when exposed to that heat amount. NHTSA said that 12 children died from this similar reason in 2016.
According to Safe Kids Worldwide CEO Kate Carr, "Technology alone cannot solve the issue of heatstroke when it comes to young children, but this new Acadia reminder can help."
Carr also added that the General Motors' Rear Seat Reminder is a must for busy parents which will remind them to always check their vehicle's rear seat before they leave.
