Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/303798
connected vehicle technology could address approximately 80 percent of crash scenarios involving non-impaired drivers and could prevent a majority of crashes that typically occur in the real world. ose crashes involve crashes while changing lanes, rear end crashes and crashes at intersections. In-vehicle warning systems would alert drivers to imminent crash situations such as merging trucks, vehicles in the driver's blind spot or vehicle ahead of them braking suddenly. V2V technology currently provides only warning signals to drivers allowing them to prevent imminent collisions, but does not automatically operate any vehicle controls, such as braking or steering. V2V does not involve exchanging any personal information or vehicle tracking. It does not identify any vehicle, but simply contains basic safety data. "V2V crash avoidance technology has game-changing potential to significantly reduce the number of crashes, injuries and deaths on our nation's roads," NHTSA Acting Administrator David Friedman says. "Decades from now, it's likely we'll look back at this time period as one in which the historical arc of transportation safety considerably changed for the better, similar to the introduction of standards for seat belts, air bags and electronic stability control technology." Testing of V2V technology began in August 2011 with the first phase of a two-phase project. In phase one, drivers acceptance clinics were designed to collect data in cars equipped with V2V safety systems. Applications that were tested included in-car collision warnings, "do not pass" alerts, sudden stopping alerts from vehicles ahead of them and other safety messages. e program ran for six months and evaluated approximately 700 drivers in Michigan, Minnesota, Florida, Virginia, California and Texas. e information showed that nine out of 10 drivers liked and approved of the V2V features. e second phase of the project was the model deployment, in which 2,800 vehicles were equipped with V2V and a limited number of vehicles with vehicle to infrastructure technology. is portion of the project ran from August 2012 to August 2013 and was held solely in Ann Arbor, MI. In this portion of the project, DOT contracted with the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute to conduct the model deployment and use V2V technology in real-world situations. V2V technology was installed on cars, trucks and buses. e vehicles were able to "talk" to each other with electronic data and transmit warning signals to drivers in other vehicles with the V2V technology. e devices that were tested were systems that were directly embedded in the vehicle, as well as aermarket safety systems and "simple" communications beacons that are brought into the vehicle. All emitted safety messages at a rate of 10 times per second which were sent to other, nearby vehicles. e technology provides the vehicle and driver with 360-degree situational awareness to address potential crash situations, including those in which a driver must decide if it is safe to pass on a two-lane road, make a le turn across oncoming traffic or in which a vehicle approaching an intersection appears to be on a collision course. V2V communications can detect threats hundreds of yards from other vehicles that cannot be seen and oen in situations in which on-board sensors alone cannot detect the threat. "e past several decades of auto safety have been dedicated to surviving crashes, but the future will be about avoiding crashes," DOT Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology Greg Winfree said. "V2V technology is the foundation for emerging safety applications." NHTSA has yet to release its report on information gathered from its model deployment, but is expecting to have a final report out soon. Aer that, the public could start seeing V2V technology in vehicles coming off the assembly line is as little as a couple years. T echnology: Almost anywhere you look nowadays, you can see or hear about the changes that are being made. Cellular phones, tablets, laptop computers and more are changing on a daily basis. ere are new applications to try and state-of-the-art equipment on which to try them. But what about transportation? Is technology changing the parameters of daily transportation? Are we on the verge of an influx of technology that will increase safety, reduce avoidable crashes and save lives? e U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration thinks so. Flying under the radar of the heavily-hyped automated, or driverless trucks (which, at best guess are still a decade away), the NHTSA has been busy exploring the possibility of connected vehicle technology. Along with DOT, the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Federal Highway Administration, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the Federal Transit Administration, NHTSA completed a one-year model deployment in August 2013 that involved 2,800 vehicles using dedicated short-range communications in the connected vehicle technology, also known as Vehicle to Vehicle or V2V. e DOT has said it will begin taking steps to enable V2V technology for light vehicles, followed by trucks, buses and more. "Vehicle-to-vehicle technology represents the next generation of auto safety improvements, building on the life-saving achievements we've already seen with safety belts and air bags," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said. "By helping drivers avoid crashes, this technology will play a key role in improving the way people get where they need to go while ensuring that the U.S. remains the leader in the global automotive industry." What is connected vehicle technology? Simply: Vehicles communicating with other vehicles. Connected vehicle systems are based on dedicated short range communications (DSRC) which is similar to Wi-Fi. It is fast, secure, reliable and unlikely to be vulnerable to interference. e technology allows vehicles ranging from cars to trucks, buses and trains to "talk" to each other. It also allows the vehicles to talk to different type of roadway infrastructure such as traffic signals, work zones, toll booths, schools zones and more. DSRC is a two-way, short-range, wireless communication which extends approximately 200 meters to 300 meters. It permits secure, very fast data known as a basic safety message, which contains information such as speed and location of the vehicle, to be transmitted from one vehicle to many other nearby vehicles as the rate of 10 times per second. Analysis from the NHTSA shows that THE PAST SEVERAL DECADES OF AUTO SAFETY HAVE BEEN DEDICATED TO SURVIVING CRASHES, BUT THE FUTURE WILL BE ABOUT AVOIDING CRASHES. " " THE TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS VEHICLES RANGING FROM CARS TO TRUCKS, BUSES AND TRAINS TO 'TALK' TO EACH OTHER. " " Vo l . 8 , N o . 3 TRUCKSTOP.COM 19