Bosch develops motorcycle to car communications to reduce crashes

Bosch, in partnership with Autotalks, Cohda Wireless and Ducati, has developed a prototype solution which connects cars and motorcycles, allowing them to communicate with each other in a bid to reduce the number of crashes involving motorcyclists. According to estimates by Bosch accident research, motorcycle-to-car communication could prevent nearly one-third of motorcycle accidents. The system enables vehicles within a radius of several hundred metres to exchange information about ten times a second about
May 26, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
311 Bosch, in partnership with 6765 Autotalks, 6667 Cohda Wireless and Ducati, has developed a prototype solution which connects cars and motorcycles, allowing them to communicate with each other in a bid to reduce the number of crashes involving motorcyclists.


According to estimates by Bosch accident research, motorcycle-to-car communication could prevent nearly one-third of motorcycle accidents.

The system enables vehicles within a radius of several hundred metres to exchange information about ten times a second about vehicle types, speed, position, and direction of travel. Well before drivers or their vehicle sensors see an approaching motorcycle, this technology informs them that a motorcycle is approaching, allowing them to adopt a more defensive driving strategy. If the system identifies a potentially dangerous situation, it can warn the rider or driver by sounding an alarm and flashing a warning notice on the dashboard. In this way, all road users receive essential information that actively helps avoid accidents.

The public WLAN standard (ITS G5) is used as the basis for the exchange of data between motorcycles and cars. Transmission times of just a few milliseconds between transmitter and receiver mean that participating road users can generate and transmit important information relating to the traffic situation. Parked or idling vehicles also transmit data to any surrounding receivers. To allow riders and drivers who are farther away to reliably receive the necessary information, the technology makes use of multi-hopping, which forwards the information automatically from vehicle to vehicle. In critical situations, therefore, all road users know what is happening and are able to take appropriate action in advance.

Location Based Systems

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Monotch to facilitate access to traffic data
    November 12, 2020
    UDAP enables the exchange of TLC data and vehicle travel data, says firm
    Read More
  • Counting the environmental costs of ITS deployment
    October 29, 2015
    David Crawford looks at the latest thinking about calculating the benefits associated with the environmental side of ITS schemes. The penny is dropping that some environmental costs “are being shifted outside the traditional bounds of evaluation methods” for ITS-based road transport projects, according to researchers at the UK University of Leeds’ Institute for Transport Studies.
    Read More
  • Lidar lets planners see big picture in Chattanooga
    April 14, 2025
    The city of Chattanooga, Tennessee, is attempting to make its streets safer by using the largest deployment of Lidar-based traffic detection in the US. Adam Hill reports…
    Read More
  • Dutch flying car successfully concludes test flights
    April 3, 2012
    Dutch company PAL-V Europe has concluded test flights of its flying car, the PAL-V (Personal Air and Land Vehicle). The patented vehicle flies in the air like a gyrocopter with lift generated by an auto-rotating rotor and forward speed is produced by a foldable push propeller on the back. On the road it drives like a sports car. No new infrastructure is required because it uses existing roads and airstrips.
    Read More

Highlighted Content