Mercedes Equipping Cars with QR Codes to Make Them Safer

MercedesMercedes-BenzGermany, 1924 > present197 models
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thinks that fitting a QR code for the car’s vehicle-specific rescue card will make its vehicles safer. The codes will be fitted to all Mercedes and SmartsmartGermany, 1994 > present13 models
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vehicles and can be retrofitted to older models, if owners choose.

In the event of an accident, the vehicle’s safety information can be scanned, and it tells rescue workers details like the location of airbags, battery and fuel tanks. Rescue workers know where to use hydraulic cutters to keep themselves and occupants safe.

The QR code stickers are placed on the fuel filler flap and the inside of the B-pillar on the opposite side of the car. Investigators say that in the majority of accidents one of these areas is available to rescue workers. When scanned by a device with an Internet connection, it takes the user to the vehicle’s safety card. Mercedes says it is preparing an app that will be ready in June that will display the safety card without an Internet connection. Mercedes has its cards available in 23 languages

The QR codes can be retrofitted to any Mercedes or Smart vehicle manufactured from 1990 onwards.

All new cars are required to have rescue cards, but rescue workers often have to take time to look up the data before being able to cut occupants to safety.