Rockleigh, N.J.

THIS is only a test, I tell myself.

So I floor the gas pedal, fighting the instinct to hit the brakes, and aim straight at Bob, who is standing directly in front of me here in a North Jersey parking lot.

Before the front bumper of the Volvo I’m driving kneecaps the poor guy, there’s a warning beep, a flash of red lights above the dashboard  and in an instant, a lurch, as the car comes to a stop. I never touched the brakes.

Bob, you’ll be relieved to know, is a test dummy and my target in the trial run of a new pedestrian-crash-prevention system to be introduced on the redesigned 2011 Volvo S60. The system is the latest development in what promises to be a new generation of safety systems that go beyond simply warning drivers of impending disasters  it actually takes control of the car to prevent them.

In 2008, 4,378 pedestrians were killed, and some 69,000 were injured, in traffic accidents in the United States, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. That has provided a strong incentive for researchers to explore ideas like warning systems, external air bags and softer crumple zones that might lessen the consequences of cars striking people.