Ford Local Hazard Information Tech Reads the Road Ahead
Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to anticipate what’s coming up around the bend? Ford thinks so, and it wants to put that ability in driver’s hands with its new technology.
Ford’s team in Cologne, Germany, is developing a feature called Local Hazard Information, which transmits information about everything from traffic jams and accidents to hailstorms and washouts to vehicles further back on the road, giving them advance notice of what lies ahead. LHI will not require the driver to interact with the system or input any information — it will use information like the activation of airbags, hazard warning lights, and windshield wipers to gather data and notify other vehicles.
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Vehicles further back on the road would receive a dashboard notification letting them know about potential hazards ahead. The transfer of information between vehicles isn’t limited to Fords — it can be used by vehicles from other automakers.
How Local Hazard Information Works
“What makes Local Hazard Information different is that it is the cars that are connected – via the Internet of Things,” Joerg Beyer, executive director, Engineering, Ford of Europe. “There is no reliance on third party apps. This is a significant step forward. Warnings are specific, relevant, and tailored to try to help improve your specific journey.”
Local Hazard Information is no mere concept technology that will never see the light of day, either. It’s being launched on the all-new Ford Puma in Europe, and it’s expected to become available in 80 percent of all Ford vehicles by the end of the year.
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Kyle S. Johnson lives in Cincinnati, a city known by many as “the Cincinnati of Southwest Ohio.” He enjoys professional wrestling, Halloween, and also other things. He has been writing for a while, and he plans to continue to write well into the future. See more articles by Kyle.