he Federal Communications Commission on Thursday voted to expand the use of vehicle drone and other short-range radar operations.

The decision by the U.S. telecommunications regulator will support technologies to detect children left behind in hot cars and driver assistance features like pedestrian detection and lane departure warnings, as well detecting the breathing of premature infants in intensive care units. The decision will also assist drones in construction, emergency rescue and commercial applications, the FCC said…

The decision will allow the use of higher-powered mobile radar operations as well as seatbelt reminders and air bag deployment controls, automakers said.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an auto industry trade group, had urged the FCC to approve this rule to enable in-cabin safety technologies “including occupant detection technology that can sense the slightest movement of a child and initiate a driver notification that someone was left unattended in the vehicle.”