Principles of Operation

PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION

The parking aid system detects objects behind the vehicle when the vehicle is in reverse gear. The parking aid module does this by calculating the distance to an object by the use of 4 ultrasonic sensors mounted in the rear bumper. The ultrasonic field is emitted in a semicircular area around the rear of the vehicle. The parking aid sensors detect objects approximately 1.8 m (5.9 ft) from the rear of the vehicle, 50 cm (1.6 ft) from the rear side of the vehicle, and 16 cm (6 in) above the ground. A 750 Hz variable warning tone is generated from a parking aid speaker attached to the parking aid module. The parking aid speaker increases its warning tone rate as the vehicle gets closer to an obstacle. When an object is detected within 25 cm (10 in) of the sensors, the warning tone becomes continuous.

The parking aid system is enabled when the ignition switch is in the RUN position and reverse (R) gear is selected. The system can be disabled through the message center located in the instrument cluster.

The parking aid system is disabled if a fault is detected in one of the 4 sensors, the parking aid speaker, or the parking aid module. This is indicated by the parking aid disabled warning in the message center. The parking aid module is on the medium speed controller area network (CAN) and can be diagnosed with a diagnostic tool.