4.3EU policy
One of the 10 priority areas for action toward the eEurope Initiative entitled "eEurope An Information Society for All," which proposes ambitious targets to bring the benefits of the Information Society within reach of all Europeans, is intelligent transport: safer, more efficient transport through the use of digital technologies. The DENSETRAFFIC project directly contributes to the implementation of further policies and EU-wide standardization and regulation in this area.
The DENSETRAFFIC project addresses, amongst others, EU standards as set out in:
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ETSI draft I-ETS 300 for RADAR equipment operating in the 76.0 to 77,0 GHz band;
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ISO TC204 WG14 for forward obstacle warning systems, collision avoidance system, and adaptive control system.
At present, there are some 50 EU directives that need to be fulfilled before a vehicle can be registered in the EU countries. Over the past 20 years, through these directives a degree of Europe-wide standardization has already been achieved. Future updates will have a positive effect on EU homologation. FLR (forward looking radar) is an integral part of the safety package in trucks and the DENSETRAFFIC system will become part of that package.
Anticipating market needs and nurturing emerging technologies where public funding can make a substantial impact by aggregating fragmented research and building critical mass ahead of market maturity.
Strengthening competitiveness of European industry in areas where Europe has a demonstrated leadership and/or in areas of strategic importance.
4.4.1Quality of life
The results of the DENSETRAFFIC project will contribute directly to improving the quality of life and health and safety by reducing the stress of driving in dense traffic conditions and by reducing the number of vehicle collisions with the entailing property damage and loss of life and injury.
The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) reports that transport crashes in the EU each year:
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Kill 43,000 EU citizens;
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Cause over 3.5 million casualties;
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Cost over 166 billion Euros;
Road crashes each year;
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Lead to 90% of all transport deaths and costs;
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Are the leading cause of death and hospital admission for citizens under 45 years;
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Cost more than congestion, pollution cancer and heart disease;
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Result in a seven times higher death rate in the worst than the best performing member states.
Research has shown that improving a driver’s reaction time by half a second can reduce the number of incidents by as much as 60 percent.
4.4.2Employment
Adoption of the DENSETRAFFIC system involved the employment of people with a variety of skills in the manufacture, integration and testing of the system throughout Europe. Since the system includes state of the art technology, assembly workers with increased high tech training will be required.
As the system becomes more widely accepted it will become a standard feature in vehicles, as was the case with airbags and ABS. Development of a reliable European Adaptive Cruise Control system and driver warning system will avoid the need to import competing systems manufactured in the US or Japan in order to meet the EU’s policies on traffic safety.
4.4.3Conservation
A reliable cruise control system will allow more efficient use of current roads with more vehicles travelling simultaneously on a stretch of road. This will avoid the necessity of building additional roads, thus conserving the environment. Additionally, adaptive cruise control in Stop&Go traffic and on the highway will reduce the amount of fuel burned by the vehicles. In addition, greater efficiency of fuel use will help to reduce pollution.
4.5Economic Development and S&T Prospects 4.5.1Exploitation
The project developed a system that is a step above the existing technology, closer to a true anti-collision device, at a cost that make it possible to include it in all vehicles rather than just as a comfort device. The relatively high price of trucks will make it easier to justify the incorporation of an additional feature, making for faster adoption of the system. The FLR developed by RoadEye is easily adaptable to cars, buses and other vehicles to increase the general overall safety of road vehicles.
The present consortium included companies that were involved not only with the development of the device, but also will be involved with the eventual mass production – UMS will manufacture the chipset, ERA the antenna and possibly EADS the RF head.
The final product will be integrated in Israel by RoadEye and then delivered to Groeneveld Groep, a major OEM supplier to the automotive industry that already has manufacturing facilities in Israel as well as subsidiaries and distributors worldwide. It was Groeneveld Groep’s recognition of the market need for an improved anti-collision device and willingness to provide financing that initiated the project. The company’s continuing market contact will ensure that adaptations of the system demanded by the market will be brought to the attention of the developers in a timely manner.
Groeneveld Groep has ongoing relations with OEM manufacturers and has indicated that some major car and truck manufacturers have shown interest in the DENSETRAFFIC product and its expected performance as a second generation to existing ACC devices.
A dissemination and use plan (DUP) has been prepared as part of Work package 7. The Dissemination and Use Plan highlights the consortium plans for exploitation of expected results within the automotive market.
The DENSETRAFFIC consortium combines several European companies with production added value capabilities in radar technologies. All the participants are extremely interested in dissemination of the results of their respective technologies into a final marketable product.
The DUP includes the following:
Market Characterization: private car and heavy transport markets are evaluated as potential users. Based on the study, a dissemination strategy is formulated.
Due to the high level of integration necessary for ACC, the consortium anticipates market entry at OEM level only.
OEM segmentation: The dissemination plan addresses specific market niches and relevant OEMs for market entry. These OEMs have been approached for collaboration on their test vehicles. Results of such contacts are be presented.
Limiting factors analysis: Factors such as performance, cost, competition and manufacturer liability were studied in order to formulate business strategy.
Business Plan: Addressing all of the above, a plan is presented indicating the added value for the DENSETRAFFIC dissemination program.
4.5.2Strategic Impact
Development of systems for collision warning is not new and TRW Inc., a major US OEM supplier believes that in the next decade, collision warning will evolve to collision avoidance systems that can provide emergency braking. Industry analysts predict that the market for adaptive cruise control, collision warning and headway control systems will grow to an estimated $2.4 billion (2 billion Euros) by 2010 from about $11 million (9 million Euros) in 1998. Estimates by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration suggest that if all vehicles were equipped with crash avoidance systems, up to 1.1 million collisions, representing about $23 billion (20 billion Euros) annually would be prevented.
One of the goals of the DENSETRAFFIC system is to provide drivers with tools to help reduce the chance of collisions resulting from unforeseen obstacles caused by other drivers cutting in and resulting from Stop&Go situations. Research has shown that improving a driver’s reaction time by half a second can reduce the number of incidents by as much as 60 percent. .
The DENSETRAFFIC system is based on proven radar technology that offers all-weather capability and is not affected by fog, rain or snow. The system incorporates self-testing capabilities to ensure that blockage by snow or mud is detected and the driver promptly notified. The system assists the driver by reducing the strain of driving under conditions of impaired visibility and heavy traffic.
Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry has fostered an extensive Advanced Safety Vehicle program, resulting in innovative safety developments from Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Mazda. In order to remain competitive, European manufacturers will have to incorporate similar systems to those being developed in the US and Japan into their cars and trucks. In the EU, almost 17 million vehicles are produced a year, including almost 15 million passenger cars and almost 2 million commercial vehicles and buses. The development of the DENSETRAFFIC system by the present consortium will avoid European manufacturers having to import such systems from outside the EU.
Between January and March 2000, the EU earned just over 11.5 billion Euros from the export of motor vehicles while importing just over 5 billion Euros worth of vehicles. Improvement in safety features, such as anti-collision systems, in European vehicles could help to tip the balance even further.
4.5.3Dissemination
Groeneveld Groep is a highly respected company with extensive connections throughout the automotive and transport industries. The company has long recognized the direct relationship between economic growth and an increasing need for mobility. Furthermore, the company has followed the various European initiatives to improve mobility while at the same time reducing the negative effects including pollution, accidents and increased congestion, including MOTIV “Mobilität und Transport im Intermodalen Verkehr”. Groeneveld Groep has been active in improving transport efficiency through its fleet management software systems and its on-board computers in heavy vehicles. At the same time the company has direct access to Israeli technology through its subsidiaries. This technical expertise, together with the company’s experience with, and access to, the OEM market motivated the establishment of RoadEye and Groeneveld Groep’s entry to the field of FLRS for ACC. Groeneveld Groep oversee the project dissemination and exploitation.
The key motivations for OEMs adopting advanced FLR and ACC technology are competition and social responsibility. This is the basis for the Dissemination and Use Plan (DUP) of DENSETRAFFIC, which aims to prepare the market for early acceptance of this technology.
The first stage was the selection of potential key users. Generally, these are high-end manufacturers of cars and trucks who have some experience with ACC. The contacts have shown that those with experience in first generation technology immediately recognize the advantages of the DENSETRAFFIC system, particularly, in overcoming the problems of cut-ins, stationary objects and Stop&Go traffic.
Dissemination to truck manufacturers and users will be through targeted features in trade magazines and by publicizing the system to trade and trucking associations. Since the cost of trucks is much higher than private cars and they are in use a much higher percentage of the time, devices designed to prevent collision damage can have a substantial commercial impact.
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