Automatic early warning system about slippery road conditions may make driving safer.
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed the system whichuses a real-time method of obtaining information about slipperiness based on data collected by the car's own sensors.
The detection system, how it works Image: VTT |
"The method entails estimating the difference in the speeds of the drive shaft and freely rotating axles in various driving situations, which enables deduction of the level of friction," says Senior Scientist Kimmo Erkkilä.
The system operates two ways - it warns all drivers in the system early and collects and maintains information as a real-time slipperiness map and log of road conditions which are presented as individual data packages. Within a drive of a few kilometres, drivers are given the information even before they notice the change in road conditions, allowing them to be prepared for slippery stretches of road.
The system can fit all makes of cars and uses a variety of vehicle terminal devices and transmission modes. So far, it has been been used in heavy lorries. VTT is currently negotiating commercialising the system.