Solving real mobility challenges

With only two weeks to go to the start of the Cooperative Mobility Showcase, Paul Kompfner, coordinator of the CVIS integrated research project, is gearing up for a busy and highly interactive event. CVIS (Cooperative Vehicle-Infrastructure Systems) has designed, developed and tested the technologies needed to allow cars to communicate with each other and with the nearby roadside infrastructure. Kompfner is convinced that now the time is right to bring the technologies to market!

The Cooperative Mobility Conference 2010 in Amsterdam will show the hundreds of visitors, from Europe as well as from Asia and the Americas, that cooperative systems are taking a big step forward, towards the appearance of products on the market and their deployment as mainstream technologies for solving real mobility challenges.

The Conference programme covers the whole spectrum from cities’ and road operators’ needs for new tools to manage mobility, via a thorough presentation by automotive, traffic and IT industries of their cooperative solutions, finishing with initiatives to build new alliances and partnerships to organise and fund deployment. In between, delegates will have the chance to hear about all the technological progress made in the European R&D programme and the results of extensive field trials across Europe.
Cars negotiating smoother journeys
When asked what application from the integrated research projects will have the most influence on the way we drive in the future, Kompfner answers: "It’s terribly hard to predict which will be the cooperative mobility ’killer applications‘ in the future. I think that the universal collection of very timely and precise information on traffic speeds and incidents, and about the road itself and the environment, will lead to far better information for drivers and travellers. Drivers will really appreciate that their vehicle can negotiate a smoother journey through a city’s traffic light jungle - avoiding traffic jams and red lights."

Kompfner continues: "Of course drivers will also value the cooperative assistance systems that can extend their safety margin through vehicle-to-vehicle communication - with warnings of accidents, slippery roads or stationary queues ahead. But there the question is how to achieve a high enough penetration rate for effective information exchange."

Sneak peak
"As CVIS approaches its conclusion after over four years of research and development carried out by its 62 consortium partners, I can highlight some key results that will be presented in Amsterdam. CVIS has developed a very complete technical solution for cooperative mobility - one that can be embedded in every new vehicle, in future traffic management systems and one day even in every smartphone!"

As Kompfner explains, this universal platform features world-leading technology to manage mobile communication, able to roam across cellular radio (3G or UMTS); short-range ITS communication (at 5.9GHz); infra-red; and European tolling system 'DSRC' media, choosing the best medium according to availability and quality.

CVIS has also developed a hybrid positioning unit that combines GPS with cellular and wireless LAN network positioning and with on-board dead-reckoning sensors and a digital map. The result on show in Amsterdam is a system that can identify which lane a vehicle is in, guiding the driver through complex intersections while detecting other vehicles that might pose a safety risk and avoiding many potential accidents.

Lastly, CVIS will show its open application platform and a kind of 'app store' of applications to be downloaded when and where the driver wants them. This will enable an extensive library and market in applications to grow quickly, giving users a speedy return of benefits. Some very innovative applications will be presented - and demonstrated out on the public road tour - for city traffic, for driving on highways and for commercial vehicles.
Largest demonstration site ever
Kompfner points out that these results have had a first airing already at the ITS World Congress in Stockholm last October. However, now the results of the extensive CVIS field trials at test sites in seven countries have been added (not to mention the many trials by SAFESPOT and COOPERS projects also on show in Amsterdam), and the live demonstrations will be far more extensive and impressive.

Why this conference is unique
It’s clear to Kompfner that the showcase is a special and unique event: "Certainly this event is the first of its kind in the world, dedicated entirely to cooperative mobility, cooperative safety and cooperative systems. This will be the first time that visitors will really experience cooperative mobility services up close at first hand, on a tour showing some 40 different applications. And some of the applications are truly original, like cooperative social networking for travellers and personal speed advice approaching a traffic light."

More information about CVIS
Conference Programme
Demonstration tour