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Airbags
144n
Deceleration sensors continuously
monitor the physical forces acting upon
the vehicle. In the event of a severe
frontal impact, the gas generators of
the driver and passenger-side front
airbags are ignited simultaneously.
However, the passenger-side front
airbag is only triggered if an additional
sensor has recognized that the
passenger seat is occupied.
If it is necessary during a side impact, a
side airbag will be triggered on the side
where the collision occurs.
The airbags located under the marked
covers inflate and unfold in a matter of
a few milliseconds. In this process they
tear through the designed breaking
points of the upholstered covers or
press them out.
Because the inflation process must be
virtually instantaneous, it is necessarily
accompanied by a certain amount of
ignition and inflation noise. The gas
required to inflate the airbags is not
dangerous, and it dissipates together
with the associated smoke.
The entire process is completed within
a fraction of a second.
Car radio reception
The AM frequency bands (medium-
wave, long-wave and short-wave) make
it possible to receive stations from a
great distance, because the broadcast
signals travel not only along the ground
as surface waves, but also as atmos-
pheric waves that are reflected from the
ionosphere.
Frequency-modulation (FM) provides
substantially better sound quality than
the other frequencies. However,
because FM transmissions rely on line-
of-sight broadcast waves, their effec-
tive reception range is limited.
The limitations which are inherent to
radio reception in a moving vehicle
have been minimized by the use of
innovative systems.
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