Skip to main content

UK researchers developing 3D 'black box' technology for vehicles

UK-based Roke Manor Research (Roke) has developed what it says is the world's first viable 3D 'black box' technology for vehicles, using a single dashboard camera. Fitted to an autonomous Toyota Prius, Roke demonstrated how data captured via vision processing technology could be used to provide a precise 3D reconstruction following a road incident. It's set to offer insurers, drivers and, in the case of autonomous vehicles, manufacturer’s independent evidence of what happened. Roke believes this will not
July 6, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
UK-based 496 Roke Manor Research (Roke) has developed what it says is the world's first viable 3D 'black box' technology for vehicles, using a single dashboard camera.

Fitted to an autonomous Toyota Prius, Roke demonstrated how data captured via vision processing technology could be used to provide a precise 3D reconstruction following a road incident. It's set to offer insurers, drivers and, in the case of autonomous vehicles, manufacturer’s independent evidence of what happened. Roke believes this will not just lead to safer vehicles but also help to build public trust in driverless vehicles.

Early iterations of this technology were first developed by Roke for soldiers in research undertaken for the UK government's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. Over the past year, Roke has been developing and miniaturising the technology with the help of funding from Innovate UK, which Roke managing director David Cole says is essential in helping the research centre remain at the forefront of autonomous and sensing technology.

According to Dr James Revell, consultant engineer at Roke, unlike current dashcams, the technology uses computer vision algorithms to enable the precise position and orientation of any vehicle - car, bike, lorry or autonomous vehicle. This allows for near-perfect 3D reconstruction of any accident to be created even if the vehicle loses complete control.

Related Content

  • March 14, 2022
    Lidar: beginning to see the light
    Lidar feels like a technology whose time has come – but why now? Adam Hill talks to manufacturers, vendors and system integrators in the sector to assess the state of play and to find out what comes next
  • April 2, 2014
    Big data and GPS combine to cut emergency response times
    David Crawford looks at technologies for better emergency medical service delivery. Emergency medical services (EMS) play key roles in transporting, or bringing treatment to, patients who become ill through medical emergencies or are injured in road traffic accidents (RTAs). But awareness has been rising steadily, in the US and elsewhere, of the extent to which EMS can generate their own emergencies. The most common cause is vehicles causing or becoming involved in RTAs, as a result of driving fast under pr
  • June 23, 2016
    Making enforcement multi-functional
    New enforcement equipment is coming onto the market apace, as Colin Sowman discovers. If there is one word that epitomises the current trend in enforcement technology then that word is consolidation: multi-function cameras, miniaturisation and combining radar and visual detection methods. One example is Turkish company Ekin Technology’s recently introduced Micro Plate is claimed to be the smallest licence plate recognition device. In addition to logging licence plate data, the system records speed, date, ti
  • August 21, 2017
    Cost benefit goes under the microscope
    Conventional cost benefit analysis (CBA) of plans for urban smart mobility initiatives needs serious rethinking, according to a recently-completed European study. The three-year Evidence Project (the Project) emerged in response to concerns about the availability and quality of documented research – including CBA – required to prove that investment in sustainable urban mobility plans (SUMPs) can be economically beneficial. Covering 22 sectors ranging from electric vehicles to shared spaces, the Project clai