Saphe launches next generation in-car alert at ITS World Congress

Next-generation in-car safety product Saphe, launched at the ITS World Congress, has captured the interest of the European Commission and United Nations (UN). Violeta Bulc, European commissioner for transport, has asked for a meeting in Brussels with Saphe founder Freddy Sørensen. Saphe fits in the palm of a hand and is installed inside a car’s windscreen. The cloud-based product connects via Bluetooth to a smartphone app and, for a monthly fee, warns drivers against hazards such as ambulances approaching
September 20, 2018 Read time: 2 mins

Next-generation in-car safety product 8847 Saphe, launched at the 6456 ITS World Congress, has captured the interest of the 1690 European Commission and United Nations (UN). Violeta Bulc, European commissioner for transport, has asked for a meeting in Brussels with Saphe founder Freddy Sørensen. Saphe fits in the palm of a hand and is installed inside a car’s windscreen. The cloud-based product connects via Bluetooth to a smartphone app and, for a monthly fee, warns drivers against hazards such as ambulances approaching or when trains are coming to level crossings. Visiting the Saphe stand with Jean Todt, UN special envoy for road safety, Bulc commented: “This product is good. It can be used all over the world. Accidents involving emergency vehicles are a major problem, the same applies to trains. So we are going to have a meeting on how we can develop this together.”

Founded in 2015, Saphe was originally designed to warn motorists about speed cameras and accidents – and 400,000 of the first version have been sold in Denmark. The main difference with the second-generation product – which will go on sale in November – is the addition of a display “so you can tell more about what’s happening”. Saphe also alerts drivers about upcoming roadworks and wrong-way drivers, and warns them when they are close to schools at drop-off and pick-up times – as well pointing out accidents and speed cameras.

“Our goal of coming to Congress is to get cooperation and development with other countries. So, getting a meeting with the commissioner is fantastic,” says Sørensen.

UTC

Related Content

  • August 7, 2019
    Trust is the key, says Cubic’s Crissy Ditmore
    Trust is the key to encouraging people to take up shared mobility and MaaS services, thinks Cubic Transportation Systems’ Crissy Ditmore. She tells Adam Hill why sharing must be the way forward Crissy Ditmore is on the move. Director of strategy at Cubic Transportation Systems since September last year, she lives in Boise, Idaho, but doesn’t see a great deal of the city as she is “90% of the time on the road”. This is appropriate for someone whose business is working out how to get people from place to p
    Read More
  • August 29, 2019
    Cohda trial proves C-ITS can work in tunnels
    Connected cars require uninterrupted signals to ensure driving safety. Going underground creates problems – but a trial in Norway suggests that there might be light at the end of the tunnel… As connectivity becomes increasingly important for transportation – in particular for connected and autonomous vehicles (C/AVs) - the problem of ‘blackspots’ and dead zones where signals fail or drop out is a pressing one. But developments early this year suggest that advances in technology might be on the brink of d
    Read More
  • December 4, 2012
    ITS World Congress debates perceptions of enforcement
    The technical programme of this year’s ITS World Congress in Vienna includes a special session on the image of enforcement. ITS International examines the scale of the problem and what can be done about it. Debate on the merits and difficulties of enforcing speed limits appears centred on a conflict of principles. Put very simply, local communities, people living close to busy or hazardous roads, want to see traffic speeds calmed. Drivers on those roads, on the whole, want their principle of freedom to be m
    Read More
  • December 18, 2017
    Copenhagen to showcase ITS in action at ITSWC 2018
    As delegates head for the 2017 ITS World Congress in Montreal, we talk to Copenhagen mayor Morten Kabell about why his city is the ideal location for next year’s event. It may have been a long time coming but the ITS World Congress will be in Copenhagen in 2018 and there can be few more fitting places to host the event. By any number of metrics - interconnected transport, cycle commuting, safer streets, reduced pollution, sustainable energy and quality of life - the Danish capital has implemented what m
    Read More

Highlighted Content