Eight out of ten serious crashes could be influenced by using car-to-car communications technology, according to the US Department of Transport, writes Brian Byrne.
The DOT has just signed a deal to carry out a full field trial with around 3,000 cars equipped with systems that can signal one another when they find themselves in proximity, such as at an intersection.
They will also be able to exchange 'messages' with 'smart' traffic management equipment.
A $14.9m grant to the University of Michigan will test the equipment in situations such as alerting the driver when it is unsafe to pass, or when someone is approaching an intersection at a speed that could cause a collision. Each car will be equipped with a radio that signals its speed and direction of travel to other cars.The trial will be conducted in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the communications-equipped cars will be from those owned by university employees. The driving part of the research will be run for a year.
The EU signed off on a similar programme in January of this year, involving tests in a number of cities.
The technology could eventually bypass current radar and laser based anti-collision systems, which all have limited fields of view.
