Location Based Systems

BMW of North America has selected Inrix's premium traffic information service for next generation connected navigation systems in North America. As part of a multi-year contract, BMW is teaming with the company to provide drivers with real-time traffic, traffic-influenced turn-by-turn directions and alerts to accidents and other incidents along their route.

Nissan has confirmed plans to make its "Easy-Fill Tyre Alert" system available on all future models it brings to market in the US beginning in 2013. This safety feature, one of the automaker's latest innovations, currently comes standard on all 2013 Nissan Altima, 2012 Nissan Leaf and 2012 Nissan Quest models, with standard or optional availability on more products to follow later this year as the automaker continues its launch of five all-new models in the next 15 months.

Nokia has announced plans to release a new version of Ovi Maps for its smartphones that includes high-end walk and drive navigation at no extra cost, available for download at www.nokia.com/maps. This move has the potential to nearly double the size of the current mobile navigation market.The new version of Ovi Maps includes high-end car and pedestrian navigation features, such as turn-by-turn voice guidance for 74 countries, in 46 languages, and traffic information for more than 10 countries, as well as de

ASECAP (the European Association of Operators of Tolled Road Infrastructures) and the European GNSS Agency (GSA) have announced they are stepping up their cooperation and will examine together the potential and the use of GNSS applications in motorway operations. The 40th ASECAP Study and Information Days, which ends today in Turin, Italy, provided an important opportunity to examine the common ground between the GSA’s support for the use of European GNSS in road transport to improve traffic management and

A road train, comprised of three Volvo cars plus one truck automatically driving in convoy behind a lead vehicle, has operated on a public motorway among other road users. The historic test on a motorway outside Barcelona, Spain, took place last week and was pronounced a success. “This is a very significant milestone in the development of safe road train technology,” commented Sartre project director, Tom Robinson of Ricardo. “For the very first time we have been able to demonstrate a convoy of autonomousl

Radwin, a specialist in backhaul and broadband wireless solutions, has launched what it claims is a ground-breaking solution that boosts broadband connectivity for vehicles in motion. The company’s Radwin 5000 Mobility solution delivers high capacity of 100 Mbps at speeds of up to 200 Km/h for video and internet connectivity. The solution comes with powerful base stations that enable connectivity to ruggedised mobile units that can be mounted on vehicles, trains and vessels. The device provides wide-area co

The world's first pedestrian airbag fitted as standard on the all-new Volvo V40 is the next step which the company says will go some way to help further reduce the number of fatalities involving pedestrians, currently 14 per cent in Europe and 25 per cent in China. It was in 2008 that Volvo announced a unique goal in stating that ‘By 2020, nobody shall be seriously injured or killed in a new Volvo'. To contribute towards that aim, it has fitted technology including pedestrian detection, city safety and the

OEM and aftermarket connected car systems in use are expected to grow from 66 million in 2012 to 356 million in 2017, according to a new report from ABI Research. While OEM solutions are gaining momentum rapidly across the globe in the US, Europe, Japan, and China, aftermarket solutions will continue to be used for applications such as stolen vehicle tracking, insurance telematics, infotainment, and road user charging.

Telogis and FleetCor Technologies have announced a global partnership for the integration of telematics and fuel card reporting that will assist in bringing greater visibility to a business' fuelling activities, improve reporting, and help reduce unauthorized fuel card use with the ultimate goal of driving down total fuel expense. The partnership includes the introduction of the Telogis Universal Premium Fleet Card powered by FleetCor and the launch of the next-generation fuel management module for Telogis

PTV has unveiled what it claims is a major new innovation: map & guide internet, the first cloud-based transport route planner. Hauliers and logistics companies may now use the map&guide software as a service (SaaS). They can simply plug in and use the software directly over the internet - saving time and money, since neither installation nor maintenance is required. PTV says the inexpensive solution, costing just €49 (US$65) per month, is particularly attractive for small and medium-sized businesses.