System can tell if signals will change and can adjust speed so driver needn’t stop.
Here’s one manufacturer that’s lighting the way to fewer jams! Audi has designed a clever new system which improves traffic flow by anticipating signals, and recommends the perfect speed at which to approach them.
The Travolution set-up will reduce drivers’ CO2 emissions, too, according to engineers at the company, by cutting the amount of time spent idling at lights.
The software is currently undergoing testing on an A5 coupé and an A6 Avant, which have been developed to communicate with specially adapted traffic lights. These can relay to the driver, via Audi’s latest Multi Media Interface (MMI) system, the perfect speed for travelling between junctions – thus preventing unnecessary acceleration and deceleration, which burns more fuel.
A second part of the project uses advanced software which computes data on traffic flow and light cycles within a town, and then produces a suggestion for how the timing of the traffic light network should be phased as a whole. The Travolution scheme is in its infancy at the moment, but the maker plans to expand the tests to more than 20 cars and 50 junctions.
And it sounds as though Transport for London could do with some help from Audi. The organisation says it’s reviewing traffic lights in the capital, with a view to slashing emissions. It’s hoping to introduce more ‘intelligent signals’, which can decide to stay green, depending on the speed of approaching cars and traffic.