Location Based Systems

Carnegie Mellon College of Engineering researchers in the US have concluded that the public could derive economic and social benefits today if safety-oriented, partially automated vehicle technologies were deployed in all cars. The researchers examined forward collision warning, lane departure warning and blind spot monitoring systems. These technologies can include partially autonomous braking or controls to help vehicles avoid crashes. Chris T. Hendrickson, director of the Carnegie Mellon Traffic21 In

Germany plans new legislation to require manufacturers of cars equipped with an autopilot function to install a black box to help determine responsibility in the event of an accident, according to Reuters. The fatal crash of a Tesla Motors Inc Model S car in its Autopilot mode has increased the pressure on industry executives and regulators to ensure that automated driving technology can be deployed safely. Under the proposal from Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt, drivers will not have to pay at

According to a new research report from M2M/IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, the number of active fleet management systems deployed in commercial vehicle fleets in North America was 5.8 million in Q4-2015. Growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.0 per cent, this number is expected to reach 12.7 million by 2020. In Latin America, the number of active fleet management systems is expected to increase from 2.3 million in Q4-2015, growing at a CAGR of 12.8 percent to reach 4.1 million in 2020. The

The UK government has launched a major consultation to help pave the way for automated cars to be used on British roads, with all drivers invited to have their say. Under the proposed measures, rules will be changed so automated vehicles can be insured for use on the roads. In addition, the Highway Code and regulations are to be altered so advanced driver assistance systems that change lanes on the motorway and park the vehicle by remote control can be used safely. Separately, the government will n

Jaguar Land Rover plans to create a fleet of more than 100 research vehicles over the next four years, to develop and test a wide range of connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) technologies. The first of these research cars will be driven on a new 41 mile test route on UK motorways and urban roads around Coventry and Solihull later this year. The initial tests will involve vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communications technologies that will allow cars to talk to each other and roadsid

Nissan Motor Company’s new Serena, due to go on sale in Japan in August, will come equipped with the company’s ProPILOT autonomous drive technology, designed for highway use in single-lane traffic. ProPILOT will assist with steering, accelerator and braking, controlled from a mono camera equipped with image processing software which recognises road and traffic situations, as well as lane markers. The system is activated and deactivated b y the driver using a switch on the steering wheel. Once activate

New findings from Juniper Research reveal that the automotive head-up display (HUD) market will exceed 16 million installed units by the end of 2021, with the market anticipated to expand fourfold during the forecast period 2016-2021. The new research, Automotive HUDs: Innovations, Strategies & Leaders 2016-2021, found that the market will be driven by increased adoption in mass-market vehicles, with growth boosted by aftermarket HUD sales. Juniper believes that the market will begin to accelerate in 20

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) says this week’s announcement by the Department for Transport (DfT) of a consultation on driverless cars is a positive step. As well as setting out regulatory changes to better facilitate the use of driverless vehicles in the future, the document also restates the potential positives from HGV platooning. The document notes that platooning should allow HGVs ‘to benefit from reduced aerodynamic drag and therefore increased fuel efficiency. Platooning could also free

A new report from MarketsandMarkets projects the global automotive security market to grow at a CAGR of 13.3 per cent between 2016 and 2021, reaching a market size of US$31.8 million by 2021. According to the report, Automotive Cyber Security Market by Security Type, the major factors behind the growth of the global automotive cyber security market are the growing connected cars being introduced from OEMs and rising security concerns among end-users.

New Zealand companies HMI Technologies and rental car company GO Rentals are trialling a real time traffic information system in 50 rental cars travelling between Christchurch and Queenstown. RouteTIP roadside beacons send simple, location-specific messages to the hands-free RouteTIP app on the user’s smartphone to provide drivers with information on hazards and traffic congestion ahead, alerts about road conditions, reminders of speed restrictions, journey time information and much more.