Location Based Systems

Jason Barnes considers how combining enforcement equipment with other traffic management technologies might benefit our future – if only the will were really in place to do so. During the ITS World Congress in Vienna in October last year, Navtech Radar and Vysion­ics ITS announced a strategic partnership that would combine the expertise of Navtech in millimetre-wave wide-area surveillance technology with Vysionics’ machine vision-based automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) and average speed measurement

Is the end for dedicated, in-vehicle telematics systems now in sight? Some seemed to think so at the recent Telematics Munich 2012 conference… Geoff Hadwick reports. Forget smartphone apps – leave that sort of thing to Apple and Google,” Roger Lanctot, associate director of the global automotive practice at consultancy Strategy Analytics told more than 700 delegates in Munich last month at the Telematics Munich 2012 conference. They are a waste of time and money, he said. Forget putting too much data on das

German automotive supplier Continental and BMW Group are pooling their development capacities to define the long-term prerequisites for series introduction of highly automated driving on European freeways. The two companies have signed an agreement to jointly develop an electronic co-pilot for this purpose, with the aim of paving the way to automated driving functions beyond the year 2020. “Automated driving is a key element in future mobility. It will significantly enhance safety, comfort and efficiency on

A real time traffic information service introduced at Mobile World Congress by traffic information and driver services provider Inrix and navigation app provider Navfree is designed to help its 12.5 million drivers worldwide save time, fuel and reduce frustration travelling every day. “Whether driving to a new destination, an important business meeting or just trying to get home in time for dinner, Inrix helps make our customers’ journeys as smooth as possible,” said Navfree CEO Peter Atalla. Inrix vice pre

Opened in November 2012, Toyota’s intelligent transportation systems (ITS) proving ground is being used to run a number of interactive tests between specially-equipped Toyota vehicles. Located at the company's Higashi-Fuji Technical Centre in Susono City, Japan, the ITS proving ground is a 3.5-hectare site that faithfully replicates a real urban environment, complete with intersecting streets, pedestrian crosswalks, and traffic signals. It is equipped with optical beacons, government-allocated 760 MHz trans

NEC Europe has received Frost and Sullivan’s 2012 European Vehicular Communications New Product Innovation Award for its vehicular communications systems. The 2012 Frost and Sullivan New Product Innovation Awards are based on an independent analysis of the European vehicular communication market, and the award recognises NEC’s leadership in this market throughout the past four years and its unique potential for the upcoming mass market introduction of products. Frost and Sullivan has recognised NEC’s vehicu

Thailand’s Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) has launched a new intelligent transportation project to manage and improve the country’s traffic system. Announcing the project, called Smart Thailand via Intelligent Transport System Empowered by MOST, MOST minister Worawat Uea-apinyakul said that current technology helps facilitate better traffic and reduce cost. “Many intelligent transport systems (ITS) effectively solve traffic problems, reduce accidents, and help preserve the environment in several

Driver risk management company DriveCam is to implement its DriveCam driver risk management and fleet management solution across Greyhound Lines’ entire fleet for a five-year service contract term. Following successful trials in its BoltBus fleet, Greyhound decided to deploy DriveCam across its entire fleet. Greyhound is now able to take advantage of DriveCam’s suite of safety and compliance services, reinforcing its safety platform. Using its Driver Science Engine, DriveCam combines data and video analytic

Israeli telecommunications company Accel Telecom has partnered with navigation and traffic app supplier Waze to launch Voyager, which it claims is the first standalone connected car smartphone device that can be easily installed in any car and operates using an existing phone number via a twin-SIM. The company says Voyager is a dedicated connected car smartphone device that provides drivers with a safer and superior connected car experience. The device combines android based smartphone technology with an HS

T-Systems Hungary has been awarded a contract by Hungarian public transport operator Kaposvari Tomegkozlekedesi to set up a new passenger information system in the municipality of Kaspovar. The project includes the installation of passenger information displays including 41 solar-powered units at bus stops, wi-fi hotspots, and a new real-time GPS tracking system. Bus arrival times will be displayed on the passenger information displays, including information on the arrival of low-floor buses for the disabl