Ford developing pothole warning system

Automaker Ford has said it is developing technology which detects the presence of potholes and alerts drivers to their location. Engineers at the Ford Research and Innovation Centre in Aachen, Germany, are experimenting with a crowd-sourced virtual pothole map, with testing due to start later this year. The map would show drivers, in real-time, on in-car displays, where potholes are, how bad they are and suggest alternative routes. “A virtual pothole map could highlight a new pothole the minute it ap
February 21, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Automaker 278 Ford has said it is developing technology which detects the presence of potholes and alerts drivers to their location.

Engineers at the Ford Research and Innovation Centre in Aachen, Germany, are experimenting with a crowd-sourced virtual pothole map, with testing due to start later this year. The map would show drivers, in real-time, on in-car displays, where potholes are, how bad they are and suggest alternative routes.

“A virtual pothole map could highlight a new pothole the minute it appears and almost immediately warn other drivers that there is a hazard ahead,” said research engineer Uwe Hoffmann, who is leading the project. “Our cars already feature sensors that detect potholes and now we are looking at taking this to the next level.”

Ford Galaxy, Mondeo and S-MAX vehicles already use on-board sensors for continuously controlled damping with pothole mitigation that detects potholes using sensors and adjusts the suspension to help reduce any potential damage.

Ford engineers are now researching using cameras and embedded modems; together, these technologies would gather detailed information on the potholes and beam it to the cloud, where it can be made available to other drivers in real time.

Further research is also exploring the use of an active suspension system designed to reduce the severity of bumps and rough road surfaces.

Related Content

  • January 31, 2012
    In-vehicle intersection violation Warning system
    Mike Schagrin, ITS Joint Program Office, RITA, and John Harding, NHTSA, describe US progress towards an in-vehicle Intersection Violation Warning system. In 2008, there were 37,261 fatalities on US roadways. Of these, 7,772, some 20.8 per cent of the total, were defined as intersection crashes or intersection-related crashes. Through a multi-agency research initiative led by the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has developed a prototype In
    Read More
  • October 15, 2020
    Saving the smartphone zombies from themselves
    As roads – particularly in cities – become busier, companies are fielding a steady trickle of products to keep pedestrians safe and vehicles flowing
    Read More
  • September 6, 2017
    Options abound for road weather sensing
    Meteorological organisations invest millions in super-computers to crunch data for ever-more accurate forecasts but inherent unpredictability means that other methods of alerting drivers and road authorities to fast-changing weather and highway conditions are essential. For years, static weather sensors to measure factors such as surface water, ice or high roadway temperatures have been embedded in highways to provide such data. But that is changing.
    Read More
  • January 31, 2012
    Intersection collision avoidance system trial
    Although much of the emphasis of research into intersection management has tended to concentrate on the needs of urban locations, there remain specific issues pertaining to rural intersections which need to be addressed. Here, Rebecca Szymkowski and Greg Helgeson, Wisconsin DOT, Todd Szymkowski, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Craig Shankwitz and Arvind Menon, University of Minnesota detail progress on an intersection collision avoidance system for more remote locations.
    Read More

Highlighted Content