On June 1, 2011 Ford introduced their talking cars to San Francisco, now I’m not talking about “talking cars” like Kitt from Knight Rider, this new vehicle can talk to other vehicles wirelessly to let each other know where they are. Check the video below to see a demonstration of their new technology: Car-to-car communication.
On June, Participants from San Francisco were invited into the vehicles and driven through common crash scenarios to experience the vehicle to vehicle communication in action.
Ford is the first automaker to build dedicated intelligent vehicles to assist us in our dangerous driving world.
The best thing about this new technology, is that Ford is working closely with other automakers to make sure that all of the vehicles are equipped with this new vehicle communication technology.
How it works
Ford’s vehicle communications research technology allows vehicles to talk wirelessly with one another using advanced Wi-Fi signals, or dedicated short-range communications, on a secured channel allocated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). This new feature is different than the current radar based technologies in place on most luxury vehicles like Volvo. Unlike the radar safety feature, which only identifies hazards that are in front of the vehicle, the new Wireless communication for the vehicles gives your vehicle 360 degree detection of dangerous situations.
This is a new type of Wi-Fi technology, it will help your vehicle communicate with other vehicles before you even get the chance to see the other driver. For example, you could be at a stop light and you have an object, or a car, blocking the view of oncoming traffic, if a vehicle runs the red light, your vehicle will be automatically alerted about the other on coming vehicle. The systems also could warn drivers if there is a risk of collision when changing lanes, approaching a parked vehicle, or if another driver loses control.
Speaking the same language
Ford is partnering with other automakers, the federal government, as well as local and county road commissions to create a common language that ensures all vehicles can talk to each other based on a common communication standard. This will guarantee that your vehicle knows exactly where other vehicles are while you drive down the road.
This has a number of different possibilities, if somehow ford integrates this system onto an App, pedestrians could have this application on their phones to minimize less accident’s against pedestrians on bicycles, or even motorcycles. Ford is trying to lay down the frame work for this new technology, if it works it could minimize the crashes and accidents that cost the US over $100 Billion dollars a year, not to mention your time. Being stuck at rush Hour for 4 hours extra because of an accident is a tremendous inconvenience.
Via: Ford
