Why autonomous vehicles are the key to safer roads

(c)iStock/CasarsaGuru

It’s a sobering fact that even in this technological age, we still see 1.2 million deaths on our roads each year. Furthermore, studies show that nearly 95% of road accidents are actually the fault of a human driver.

Autonomous technology has the potential to deliver persistent situational awareness, i.e. it can be aware of aware of everything that is happening around it at all times, it never gets distracted or inebriated and it always obeys the rules of the road.

But the level of...

By Stan Boland, 12 December 2016, 0 comments. Categories: Regulation, Standards.

What role do telecoms providers play in the development of the connected car?

(c)iStock.com/erhui1979

The future of the connected car is going to have many services that rely on the quality of the connection within the vehicle. Telecoms providers therefore need to make connectivity simple, reliable and most importantly, available.

JC&C Bowers, Pangea’s strategic partner and service provider in the automotive space, knows all too well of the opportunity and importance of telecoms providers to the connected car.

As JC&C’s CEO, John Bowers, explains: “It’s...

By Dan Cunliffe, 01 December 2016, 0 comments. Categories: Contextual data, Data & Analytics, Regulation, Standards.

Half a million electric cars on European roads by 2017, report says

(c)iStock/CHUYN

There will be over half a million electric vehicles on the roads of Europe by the end of the year, according to a new report.

Incentives such as the extension of the UK's plug-in-van grant scheme and Germany's electromobility scheme means there's been an uptake in the number of these types of vehicelss. 

However, sales of electric vans are at a fraction of that of cars,...

By Rachael Power, 04 November 2016, 0 comments. Categories: Standards.

BMW and Hyundai top J.D. Power car technology rankings

(c)iStock.com/sndr

BMW and Hyundai are the highest ranked car brands with regard to experience with vehicle technology, according to an inaugural report from J.D. Power.

The Tech Experience Index (TXI) measured car models and manufacturers on collision protection, comfort and convenience, driving assistance, entertainment and connectivity, navigation, and smartphone mirroring. The study found that two BMW cars – the 2 Series for small premium and 4 Series for compact premium – and two Hyundai...

By James Bourne, 12 October 2016, 0 comments. Categories: Insurance, Regulation, Standards.

Telcos and automotive players unite for 5G automotive association

(c)iStock.com/77studio

A new association comprising a group of automakers and network providers will be dealing with issues related to connected mobility and road safety needs through 5G mobile networks with applications such as connected automated driving, ubiquitous access to services and integration into smart cities and intelligent transportation.

The newly formed 5G Automotive Association is a team comprising Audi, BMW, Daimler, Ericsson, Huawei, Intel, Nokia and Qualcomm, which will address key...

By Connected CarTech, 29 September 2016, 0 comments. Categories: Connectivity, Ecosystems, Regulation, Standards.

Autodata launches range of APIs for developers

(c)iStock.com/baona

Autodata, a supplier of technical information to the automotive automarket, has launched a new range of APIs in order to offer more opportunities to developers in the B2B and consumer automotive markets.

Autodata chief technology officer, Neil Brooks, said: “Over the past year we have managed to establish a seamless process that has allowed us to pass APIs through the alpha and beta stages to launch extremely efficiently and we are delighted to now be in a position where the vast...

By Connected CarTech, 15 January 2016, 0 comments. Categories: Apps, Standards.

How will connected cars affect the road haulage industry?

Picture credit: Returnloads

With the potential capabilities of connected vehicle technology, we can hope for a safer, smarter and greener road transport industry.

The vision for connected vehicle technology is to transform and modernise road transport systems to create a future where:

  • Road traffic accidents and fatalities as a result are dramatically reduced
  • Traffic managers being able to access data so they can accurately review transport system performance and actively manage the system in real-time, for optimal performance
  • Drivers have access to accurate, up to date travel...

By Richard Newbold, 14 October 2015, 0 comments. Categories: Best practice, Data & Analytics, Security, Standards.

US government wants to accelerate vehicle-to-vehicle communication

(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/Todor Tsvetkov)

Over the next few years, more vehicles will start being aware of others around them to help prevent accidents. The US government wants to accelerate the deployment of Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communication to improve safety. 

V2V is relatively new, and the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) has already committed to delivering proposed rules for its...

By Ryan Daws, 14 May 2015, 0 comments. Categories: Connectivity, Driverless, Regulation, Standards.

How safe and secure are autonomous vehicles?

©iStock.com/DenisTangneyJr

There is widespread discussion that driverless cars, and more broadly autonomous vehicles, will monumentally change the landscape of the automotive industry, arguably creating the biggest transformation of society’s view of the vehicle in the last 150 years.

Public acceptance of the vehicle began following the ‘Red Flag Act’ of 1865 when, by the 1890s, it became the ‘norm’ to see motor vehicles mingling, albeit uncomfortably, with the horse and...

US legislation for connected car cybersecurity edges closer

Federal standards that secure cars and protect drivers’ privacy have taken a step closer to reality, after new legislation was announced at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing.

Senators Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut want the legislation to direct National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to create these new federal standards.

The concerted push for legislation comes after Markey’s own office

By Simon Holland, 12 February 2015, 0 comments. Categories: Bluetooth, Connectivity, NFC, Privacy, Regulation, Security, Standards.

How does legislation for driverless cars differ between the US and UK?

Driverless cars are a hot topic at the cutting edge of automotive developments. To date, much of the focus on driverless cars has been in the USA who appear to be in “pole position” in relation to the testing and development of this technology. For example, it has been reported that Google’s driverless vehicle has driven 300,000 miles in the US without any accidents.

The UK is keen to come on board to become a global leader in the development of autonomous vehicles, with plans to invest...

By Ruth Graham, 11 February 2015, 0 comments. Categories: Artificial Intelligence, Driverless, Regulation, Standards.

Connected car security ripped apart by US senator

©iStock.com/Henrik5000 

United States Senator for Massachusetts, Ed Markey, has released a new report criticising the current connected car security measures that many top manufacturers currently employ.

Almost all modern vehicles have a wireless entry point, while some even have multiple WEPs, including Bluetooth, keyless entry, remote start, wi-fi and telematics. All of these are susceptible to vulnerabilities or hacking, according to Markey.

“Drivers have come to rely on these new...

By Simon Holland, 10 February 2015, 0 comments. Categories: Privacy, Security, Standards.

BMW moves quickly to solve security hole

A flaw discovered by Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club e.V. (ADAC) in BMW’s ConnectedDrive system has now been solved by the manufacturer.

More than 2.2 million vehicles were said to be affected by the vulnerability to ConnectedDrive, BMW’s in-car operating system. ADAC reported that a mobile was all that was required to access the platform.

By spoofing a phone network ADAC was able to break into ConnectedDrive. From here it was possible to control heating, ventilating, and air conditioning,...

By Simon Holland, 02 February 2015, 0 comments. Categories: Connectivity, Privacy, Security, Standards.

A look into the future: Secure connected cars

Picture credit: Denis Bocquet

The number of people living in cities is expected to double by 2050, meaning congestion and pollution will increasingly be a problem for city dwellers. As a result the cities of the future will demand smarter traffic management solutions and more intelligent vehicles.

Experts say that the car industry will develop more in the next decade than it has in the last fifty years due to the rise in connectivity and mobile technology. The industry is gearing itself up for the age of the...

2014: The year connected cars roared into adolescence

©iStock.com/Prykhodov 

It has been a big year for connected cars. Automakers, handset vendors, app developers and aftermarket CE manufacturers have graduated from a primary education in the best ways to support car and smartphone connectivity. There is now a solid outline of what the future body of connected driving will look like.

As the anatomy fills out, we have learned some critical lessons. Most importantly, smartphones are without question the brain of the connected car organism. They have the...

By Antti Aumo, 19 December 2014, 0 comments. Categories: Android, Apps, Best practice, CarPlay, Connectivity, Devices, Ecosystems, Mirrorlink, Regulation, Standards.