Networking & Communication Systems

The Netherlands on Monday launched its first-ever ‘intelligent bicycle, fitted with an array of electronic devices to help bring down the high accident rate among elderly cyclists in the cycle-mad country. Developed for the government by the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO), the intelligent bicycle prototype runs on electricity, and sports a forward-looking radar mounted below the handlebars and a camera in the rear mudguard.

Hybrid communications to variable message signs increase resilience to natural disasters and enable deployment in remote areas, as Alan Allegretto explains. Variable Message Signs (VMSs) are a common sight and a well-proven means to improve public safety on our roads and highways. ITS professionals rank the VMS as second only to interoperable radios as the most important technology to improve effectiveness during emergency incidents and evacuations. Ironically, however, current systems suffer from one criti

Aalborg City Business Association in Denmark is using sensors to measure the impact of major events, such as the annual Christmas market. They have installed BlipTrack, a system developed and produced by Danish information technology company Blip Systems, with sensors placed at various pinch points in the pedestrian area to monitor real-time pedestrian flow, people´s dwell time and movement pattern, from the moment they enter an area until they leave and everywhere in between. The sensors collect data

Antaira Technologies’ marketing engineer Brian Roth explains why the increasing capacity of wireless bridges is reducing the cost of expanding and upgrading ITS networks. With more than half of the world’s population now living in cities, the need for efficient transportation of both people and goods has never been greater and that pressure is unlikely to ease any time soon. Indeed in many regions of the world the rate of urbanisation is still increasing as the demand for rural workers continues to decline.

Swiss wireless communications specialist and Australia connected vehicle technology provider Cohda Wireless have joined forces to develop an advanced vehicle to vehicle/infrastructure (V2X) solution. Offering best in class performance, the MK5 was recently demonstrated at the 2014 ITS World Congress in Detroit and is suitable for first-mount automotive electronics, aftermarket products and roadside infrastructure. Cohda’s dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) based V2X system uses accurate satel

Swiss based u-blox has acquired the automotive-grade Bluetooth and wi-fi module products of Lesswire, a subsidiary of the PRETTL group. Founded in 1999, Lesswire provides robust vehicle-ready short range wireless communication modules to Tier-1 automotive electronics suppliers in Europe and Asia.

Variable message signs have been installed on the Danish E20 highway between Odense and Copenhagen to give truck drivers real-time information on available parking areas. The highway, part of the Scandria corridor, carries some of the highest commercial vehicle volumes and connects capitals and metropolitan regions along the shortest route from Scandinavia via Central Europe to the Adriatic Sea. In the interests of road safety, truck drivers must adhere to strict travel and rest times.

PT Marga Utama Nusantara, a toll road management company in Indonesia is using Fujitsu’s SPATIOWL traffic information service, a cloud service that utilises location information, to collect probe data such as vehicle location, time and speed, and generates and accumulates traffic information, such as congestion conditions and their duration. Indonesia’s increase in traffic due to population growth and rapid economic development has intensified the problems of traffic congestion and frequent traffic accid

Spanish administrator of railway infrastructures, Adif, has awarded the Thales/Siemens joint venture a contract for the installation of traffic control, automatic train protection, telecommunications and safety technologies on the Olmedo-Ourense high-speed line section, together with maintenance over a 20-year period. The amount of the contract is US$637 million. Thales is to install the European Railway Traffic Management System (ERTMS) Level 2 automatic train protection system, wayside LED light signal

The winners of AT&T's Connected Intersections Challenge, a technology challenge aimed at stimulating innovative solutions to improve traffic safety on New York City streets. Forty-five teams from 13 countries and 26 states submitted their apps and wearable devices ranging from smartphone sensors, phone-to-phone communications and natural user interfaces, among other technologies. The winners include: Tug, an app that alerts pedestrians as they are about to enter an intersection; an anti-sleep alarm