This is how Volvo has improved the safety of electronic door opening on the new EX60

For some time now, you have surely heard about the controversy surrounding the electronic door opening systems that many modern vehicles are equipped with today. A system that, in some cases, fortunately few, has even led to the death of occupants because they were unable to get out of the vehicle after an accident.

It is therefore surprising that, amid this controversy, Volvo has chosen to equip its new EX60 electric crossover with shark-fin exterior handles with fully electric opening.

Anders Bell, Volvo’s current Director of Technology, recently addressed this issue during the EX60 launch event. According to him, from his point of view, the main problem does not lie in the handles themselves, but in the overall safety of the system. Bell believes the debate is somewhat misdirected, since special attention is paid to the door handles while what really matters is overlooked, the redundancy that guarantees a quick and reliable exit from the vehicle in the event of an accident, whether the opening is activated by the occupant or by a third party attempting to rescue them.

Without power, the doors are locked, so alternative systems must be used

Handles with electronic opening systems require power to operate, unlike traditional mechanical ones, and it is not unusual for them to stop responding after a serious collision or a total loss of battery power. Volvo asserts, however, that it has solved this problem in the new EX60 through a comprehensive redundancy approach.

Inside, the mechanism combines an electrical system and a traditional mechanical one in a single handle located on the armrest. Gently pulling the handle activates the electronic system, but if pulled with more force, a cable comes into operation that mechanically releases the door. In this way, in a panic situation, the instinctive gesture of pulling hard always opens the door. There is no risk of becoming trapped.

Likewise, on the outside, so that rescue team members after an accident, or even passersby who come to help the vehicle’s occupants, can open the doors from outside, the doors always unlock automatically after an impact. Additionally, instead of relying solely on the 12-volt battery, which can be damaged in a collision, the EX60 has two independent DC-DC converters, one on each side under the rear seats, connected to each other.

Minimizing the risk

These devices convert energy directly from the main high-voltage battery pack to power the emergency systems. According to Bell, although it is true that after a serious accident one of them may be damaged, it is highly unlikely that both will be damaged at the same time unless the accident is extremely severe, in which case the occupants would have no chance of survival and the vehicle would be so unrecognisable that it would be impossible to open the doors even with a fully mechanical system.