What is ADAS?

ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) is a technological system made up of features designed to assist the driver  with a primary focus on collision avoidance thereby improving the drivers' performance and safety. 

The electronic sensors that comprise the ADAS technology need to be re-aligned when there has been any work carried out on the car (such as collision repairs, windscreen replacement, wheel alignment, etc) that would lead to disturbance in the precise physical alignment of these sensors and cameras. This is called recalibration. We could think of it as the  precise electronic aiming of sensors that collect data and communicate with your vehicle’s advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), providing warnings such as forward collision warning (FCW), lane departure warning (LDW), automatic emergency braking (AEB) among others.

The windscreen-mounted forward facing camera and other sensors need to know where to look. Recalibration of this camera and the other sensors, (ACC module in front bumper and BSM module in rear bumper) aligns their aim to be able to function precisely. A misalignment of even a fraction of an inch or even one degree will be aimed at an area significantly off axis 50 or more feet down the road.  Likewise, according to IIHS Advisory 43, a change as little as .6 degrees would cut the reaction time of AEB in half.

Automotive professionals carry out this recalibration procedure to ensure proper functioning of the vehicle's ADAS technology by following OEM standards.