Research project makes life safer for pedestrians and cyclists
Pedestrians and cyclists are considered particularly vulnerable to traffic. It is therefore even more important for them to be involved in concepts for traffic networking: their smartphones are used to provide warnings in advance of traffic obstacles, their position data are transmitted to other road users. This approach is followed by the TIMON project (“enhanced real-time services for optimized multimodal mobility on cooperative networks and open data”). In addition to the data of these vulnerable road users (VRU), information from various sources is evaluated. These include e.g. open transport data such as traffic reports, data from infrastructure sensors such as the current traffic density as well as position data of vehicles. These data are fed to a a cooperative open web platform via mobile radio or via the vehicle-specific WiFi standard ITS-G5. There they are processed and analyzed; then they are transmitted, as warning messages to all concerned traffic participants and their respective terminals, in real time.
Within the project, the Fraunhofer ESK (Munich, Germany) is responsible for connecting the traffic participants among each other and with the open web platform. The researchers use their adaptive hybrid Car2X communication system. It combines various wireless technologies, such as WiFi and mobile communications, and applies the appropriate technology depending on the situation. Latest tests in the Netherlands have shown that this adaptive hybrid communication system is able to meet the demanding quality requirements of TIMON.
The purpose of the research project is not to create a system of complete and one hundred percent traffic safety through networking, explains Karsten Roscher, research assistant at Fraunhofer ESK. “We are more concerned with investigating the technological prerequisites for more traffic safety by consistently connecting all traffic users.” Of course, according to Roscher, car drivers must not lose their due care. “This, however, is not the subject of the research project,” says Roscher. The goal of the project is to establish a continuous flow of information between road users, infrastructure operators and information service providers. Selected core technologies such as hybrid networking, artificial intelligence for the detection of critical traffic situations and accurate self-positioning are to be further developed. The project aims to create an open platform where third-party solution providers can participate.
The TIMON project is funded by the EU under the Horizon 2020 research program. In addition to the Fraunhofer ESK, ten partners from seven other European countries are involved – the Deusto University and the research facility CTTC (both Spain), technology companies Intecs (Italy), The Sensible Code Company (UK) and Iskra (Slovenia), geo-information specialist GeoX (Hungary), Cloud expert XLab (Slovenia), transport infrastructure provider Ljubljana LPT (Slovenia), the non-profit organization Corte (Belgium) as well as the test service provider TASS International (Netherlands).
The next tests will take place in the spring of 2018, the project runs until the beginning of 2019.
More information: https://www.timon-project.eu/
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