Silicon Valley-based automotive technology developer and pioneer of Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technology, Savari Inc has announced that the first real-world deployment of its Vehicle-to-Pedestrian (V2P) communication system will be taking place in New York City.
The New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) will deploy the Savari SmartCross V2P solution as part of its NYC Connected Vehicle Project – For Safer Transportation. The system makes use of Savari’s cloud-based V2X software to bring pedestrians into the Connected Vehicle (CV) landscape. Initially developed in collaboration with the US Department of Transportation (USDOT), this is the first real-world deployment of SmartCross, which helps people with impairments use crosswalks more confidently by providing relevant information to drivers and pedestrians when they need it.
The mobile phone app, in conjunction with the Savari cloud software is fully integrated into the city’s traffic management systems and provides critical information regarding the intersection geometry and traffic light status to pedestrians who may otherwise be distracted. In addition, the technology has the capability to alert V2X-enabled vehicles of potential conflict with pedestrian movements. Since most smartphones do not have the positioning accuracy needed for such applications, Savari has developed a mobility tag that provides its smartphone application with greatly enhanced location precision and accuracy.
Savari’s V2P applications aim to make pedestrians and bicyclists active participants in the V2X landscape, especially in a Smart City scenario. Pedestrians and cyclists are connected to vehicles and traffic lights through their smartphones. The system alerts the driver of a vehicle at the intersection of an approaching and distracted pedestrian who is violating the do-not-cross signs or crossing the road where he is not supposed to. The alert displays in a car’s infotainment dashboard or on the driver’s tablet or smartphone, providing the driver with life-saving reaction time.
SAE J2735 compliant and compatible with CVRIA architecture, the SmartCross Ecosystem uses an app that interfaces with traffic signal systems through a Road-Side-Unit (RSU) and receives information about the pedestrian signal. Picking up signals between the pedestrian’s phone and the nearest traffic signal box, the app sends an alert to notify pedestrians when they have the signal to cross. The app also enables users to request the pedestrian signal.
Savari says this first real-world deployment is yet another testimony to its leadership in V2X technologies. NYC’s deployment will serve as a model for other major USA cities looking to improve the safety of their roadways. CV technology such as the SmartCross app from Savari is helping NYC reach its Vision Zero goals to eliminate traffic related deaths and reduce crash related injuries and damage to both vehicles and infrastructure. The NYC Connected Vehicle Project is primarily focused on mobility safety applications that rely on V2P, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications.
“Our approach is unique in terms of taking a ubiquitous device, such as the smartphone, and aiming to turn it into a potential safety enhancement system on the road,” explained Savari’s CEO, Ravi Puvvala. “We continue to push the envelope in terms of what is possible with V2X, and we are proud to be working with NYCDOT on this program as a way to enable the communications between vehicles, infrastructure and pedestrians, which is so essential to building smart cities.”
