The future of vehicle safety is moving more and more toward in-car electronic systems that will be able to prevent accidents, and the European Union has taken a major step in laying the foundation for some of that automated safety equipment. The EU enacted a new regulation on Friday that reserves an EU-wide frequency band for automotive use.
The latest step is just one part of the EU’s 2006 Intelligent Car Initiative, which is intended to reduce vehicle accident and congestion throughout Europe.
The reserved frequency will be used for “immediate and reliable communications between cars, and between cars and roadside infrastructure,†according to Motor Authority. Although no current vehicles have the technology to use the new frequency, by the turn of the decade cars are expected to be equipped with the technology to ‘talk’ to each other, as well as warn drivers about upcoming traffic jams or traffic accidents. EU officials are hopeful that the new lines of communication will be able to reduce the number of traffic accidents, and therefore reduce the corresponding numbers injuries and deaths.
The U.S. and Japan have already enacted similar regulations to protect frequencies for vehicle applications.
Individually, many automakers have already begun experimenting with vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-road communication, with Ford ’s ‘smart intersection’ leading the way for U.S. manufacturers.
