Vehicle alert technology coming to motorcycles – July 3, 2006
A recently developed vehicle-to-vehicle communication system that warns motorcycle and automobile drivers of the possibility of a collision could be on bikes by 2008.
Statistics of on-road accident fatalities in Japan indicate that motorcyclists account for
18 percent of the annual number of motor vehicle-related deaths there. Of that percentage, some 63 percent of fatalities resulted from a collision between an automobile and a motorcycle, and some 90 percent of that number occurred when an automobile driver failed to recognize a motorcyclist in traffic.
Believing that mutual recognition between automobile drivers and motorcycle riders is a key to accident prevention, organizers of the Advanced Safety Vehicle (ASV) Project say the recently developed vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication system could result in a 30 percent drop in the number of accidents recorded in Japan annually.
Promoted by Japan’s leading powersports manufacturers working alongside government entities, the ASV Project is a recurring five-year plan launched in 1991 to reduce traffic accidents through the use of new technologies. The recently ended third phase (2001-2005) allowed project members to test the technology compiled during the first (1991-1995) and second (1996-2000) phases.
Similar to semi-autonomous functions now found in vehicles from BMW, Honda, Mercedes-Benz and Toyota, among others, the ASV system uses an array of on-board cameras, sensors and detection software to provide an electronic map of a rider’s surroundings and warn of impending dangers.
For example, when a motorcyclist approaches a stop sign, the motorcycle onboard-detection camera recognizes the stop sign and directs the rider to slow down. Once stopped, the rider further uses the V2V communication display to confirm that it is safe to merge.
Incoming information includes the opposing vehicle’s type, position, speed, braking status, acceleration/deceleration, turn signal activation and other data, all communicated via onboard display and voice directions.
Made up of project members including Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha — all of which have produced ASV-3 test vehicles — the ASV Promotion Committee says it believes that exclusive frequency ranges, communication protocols and other parameters necessary to bring the technology to practical use could be in place by 2008.
