Autos News
DaimlerChrysler: Car to car communication successful
By DPA
Dec 20, 2006, 5:38 GMT

Stuttgart - DaimlerChrysler says it has conducted successful field testing of a car to car communication system with vehicles warning each other of a dangerous situation or obstacle on the road.

Five vehicles equipped with WLAN-based radio technology detected with on-board sensors fog, ice or broken-down vehicles and transmitted the information to the following cars who could take action in plenty of time, the manufacturer said.

The test was conducted at the conclusion of the 'WILLWARN' (Wireless Local Danger Warning) European research project.

One of the key benefits is that expensive, fixed-installation transmitting and receiving devices are not required, since the cars themselves act as both transmitters and receivers. The cars establish an ad-hoc radio network and send warnings to all other vehicles within a radius of around 500 metres, according to the car maker.

For vehicles outside this radio range, the cars act as relays and pass on any warnings in much the same way as a relay runner would hand over a baton. No additional sensors are required to detect critical situations with the information provided by the anti-lock braking system (ABS), the Electronic Stability Program (ESP), the steering-angle sensors, the outside thermometer or the navigation system, according to DaimlerChrysler.