NEW YORK, Nov. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- GM's OnStar today announced a
significant milestone for in-vehicle safety and emergency medical response.
Over the course of the past 12 years, its Automatic Crash Response (ACR)
technology has aided subscribers and others on the nation's roadways in more
than 100,000 crash incidents. The ability of OnStar to pinpoint the GPS
location of the crash and convey to emergency responders the magnitude of the
incident has assisted in the dispatch of the appropriate level of response
from emergency service personnel -- in many cases meaning the difference
between life and death.
(See video from General Motors (NYSE: GM) at:
http://inr.mediaseed.tv/GM_35963/)
"We started with a vision that we could build on GM's 100-year history of
redefining a safer future in automotive transportation, and are very pleased
that we've been able to continue to innovate in this important area," said
OnStar President Chet Huber. "We've been extremely fortunate to have developed
a wide range of important relationships with the Emergency Response Community
that has helped guide our innovations as we've continued to move the frontier
in crash response capabilities."
OnStar's crash response capabilities have evolved significantly over the
past 12 years. Now in its 8th generation, OnStar's embedded technology, built
on the strength of more than 400 patent filings, responds to more than 2,000
crash incidents per month. When OnStar launched in 1996, the vehicle would
send a signal to OnStar upon airbag deployment. The enhancements to the
service now allow the technology to provide real-time data about the type and
severity of the crash to OnStar's dedicated emergency team. OnStar advisors
relay this crash data, including the number, direction and severity of
impacts, airbag deployment, and rollover information -- to the appropriate 911
emergency call center.
"Since the idea of using wireless communications for automatic crash
notification first started in the mid 1990s, GM and OnStar have led the way in
making that idea a reality for crash victims," said Dr. Jeff Runge, an
emergency physician and former Administrator of the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration. "OnStar has steadfastly sought to improve Automatic
Crash Response with a combination of technology and a human connection,
getting the right response to the right place as quickly as possible. I would
urge all automakers to consider the benefits of providing this technology to
their customers."
Emergency responders use this data to better anticipate the types and
severity of injuries resulting from the crash and to determine whether care at
a trauma center is necessary. Dr. Jeff Clawson, best known as the father of
emergency medical dispatch says, "This is not something that could have
happened without a strong vision backed up by deep technical capabilities and
a willingness to venture into unknown space to take up a major societal
challenge. GM has done an admirable job bringing this capability to life
through OnStar, and has undoubtedly helped save lives and mitigated the
effects of serious injuries for thousands of their customers and others
involved in those 100,000 crashes."
Many times, the country's firefighters are the first on the scene of these
crashes. Chief Jim Harmes, former President of the International Association
of Fire Chiefs, and Chief of the Grand Blanc, Michigan, Fire Department,
applauds OnStar for its enhancements in the public safety arena. "This
technology allows us to do our jobs better, faster and more informed. Having
pertinent data available to us within seconds of a crash enables us to arrive
at the scene with a more accurate idea of what has happened. This technology
truly benefits everyone involved."
OnStar subscribers like Kristopher Kalfas of Texas continually
substantiate the importance of the service. On June 22, 2008, Kalfas was in a
serious collision while driving his GMC Sierra. "OnStar was able to get the
police and EMS to me fast. They are really able to help save people's lives.
They helped save mine. I am very thankful. And to that OnStar advisor who was
talking to me that night, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are an
angel. Thank you OnStar. Thanks for helping me see my 23rd birthday."
Dr. Bradford Parkinson of Stanford University and recipient of the
National Academy's Draper Prize for the development of GPS commented: "When I
led the advocacy and development of GPS in the 1970's we could predict many
benefits to society. The creativity of American industry has gone much
further. Among the real surprises is OnStar, clearly helping to save lives
and benefiting all those who have used this system. The ability to locate
people in distress, assess their needs and request the appropriate help on
their behalf is laudable. OnStar and GM are utilizing GPS technology to
benefit society and all of those on our nation's roadways. I congratulate
them for their contribution to all of us."
Huber concludes, "OnStar as a whole has evolved into something much larger
than we first imagined. It has been extremely rewarding to develop technology
that is now a part of the fabric of the emergency medical community's efforts
to materially improve the outcomes of crashes. With more than 200 million
subscriber interactions since that first crash, we're only beginning to
deliver on the power of OnStar."
For more information on Automatic Crash Response and OnStar's other
services, visit www.onstar.com.
About GM
General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), the world's largest automaker, has been
the annual global industry sales leader for 77 years. Founded in 1908, GM
today employs about 266,000 people around the world. With global headquarters
in Detroit, Mich. GM manufactures its cars and trucks in 35 countries. In
2007, nearly 9.37 million GM cars and trucks were sold globally under the
following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Hummer,
Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Vauxhall and Wuling. GM's OnStar subsidiary is
the industry leader in vehicle safety, security and information services. More
information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.
About OnStar by GM
OnStar, a wholly-owned subsidiary of General Motors, is the leading
provider of in-vehicle safety, security and communication services. OnStar is
available on more than 50 MY 2009 GM models. OnStar is standard for one year
on nearly all new GM retail vehicles in the United States and Canada. OnStar
provides services to more than 5.5 million subscribers in the U.S. and Canada.
OnStar ranked at the top of the latest Consumer Telematics Vendor Matrix
released by ABI Research in 2008. More information about OnStar can be found
at http://www.onstar.com/.
Registered journalists can access video, audio, text, graphics and photos
for free and unrestricted use at http://www.mediaseed.tv.
11NY08-0118
SOURCE Medialink and General Motors
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