Drivers' Clairvoyance: Universal Portable Road Condition Monitoring Technology

General Motors researchers are developing a new technology that would create a wireless safety network through small portable devices to alert drivers to potentially dangerous situations.

General Motors equips drivers with "clairvoyance"

The portable device automatically obtains road condition information such as other vehicles and surrounding infrastructure, and alerts the driver to slowing or stalled vehicles, emergency braking vehicles, slippery roads, sharp turns, and stop signs and intersections ahead.

Unlike today's most advanced safety systems that try to minimize damage after a crash, GM's new technology can prevent accidents from happening. The technology, called vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, could help prevent nearly 81% of vehicle accidents in the U.S., according to a study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

"This system will be a major leap forward in automotive safety, but its performance will only be realized if more people use it," said Don Grimm, senior fellow of vehicle sensing and control systems at GM. "By putting this system in a portable device, this life-saving technology can be made widely available and affordable."

GM has tested the technology on two mobile platforms: a GPS-sized receiver with a separate display screen; and a smartphone app that can be connected to the vehicle display. For the smartphone app, GM engineers can connect the smartphone to the vehicle's audio and video devices so that messages can be pushed seamlessly to the vehicle display system. GM will demonstrate the technology at the Smart Transportation Global Conference in Orlando, USA.

Whether embedded systems, portable receivers, or smartphone technology, all use Dedicated Short-Range Communications (DSRC) to transfer data between devices within a 400-meter radius. DSRC radios can send and receive messages to other vehicles traveling in the area, as well as communicate with fixed radios connected to traffic lights or construction zones.

These systems can provide important information through basic positioning data. For example, if the driver at the front of the convoy hits the brakes, the following vehicles can automatically receive an alert; two vehicles approaching an intersection can send each other alerts before the drivers see each other.

When fully connected to the car's computer system, these devices can also relay vehicle information that has been collected by sensors inside the car. For example, when the electronic stability control system is turned on, the sensors can alert other drivers of dangerous road conditions ahead.

As an added bonus, pedestrians and cyclists who use smartphones can download a special app that lets drivers know where they are. The technology can help prevent vehicles from hitting each other, as well as pedestrians and cyclists.

"The technology we are testing now is a viable way to provide drivers with important safety information," said Grimm. "Instead of looking only ahead, drivers will now be able to see what is happening in the same lane hundreds of meters away. In the next decade, smartphones, receivers and embedded systems could work together to make our roads safer."

GM is working to put these communication systems into new cars, and researchers are also working to develop ways to use them in existing vehicles.