Swedish manufacturer Volvo has won the race to lead the development and demonstration of an advanced Commercial Vehicle Infrastructure Integration (VII) programme in New York State.
Volvo Technology North America was selected by the New York State Department of Transportation to demonstrate VII applications for commercial vehicles along key transportation corridors in the greater New York City region. VII is an advanced intelligent transportation system technology that uses infrastructure similar to that of the 915Mhz based systems but has the capability of very high speed, high capacity data communication thanks to on-board communication devices that are included in the control systems of the vehicle.
Visual and audible information is available to the driver and the vehicle will communicate information to the VII roadside infrastructure as well as other vehicles, which creates smart vehicles operating on a smart highway system.
The VII development has so far focused almost entirely on passenger vehicles. Now this Volvo-led effort is the first programme devoted to the technology for commercial vehicles.
The idea is that Volvo will test enhanced vehicle security, demonstrating driver identification and verification. The programme will also test the ability to gather real-time information about safety components such as brake conditions.
Ultimately, the goal is to enhance highway user safety by allowing smart vehicles and highway infrastructure to communicate information to the driver. For commercial vehicles, the system may also be used to improve vehicle productivity, enhance fuel efficiency and reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.
