New eCall test service launched by innovITS ADVANCE

Date: 14/6/2012

A new eCall test service has been launched by innovITS ADVANCE.

The new safety technology eCall is being introduced in a growing number of European Union member states and innovITS has created a testing capability for vehicles equipped with the tool.

It aims to make the roads safer for drivers by automatically alerting emergency services when an accident takes place and the motorist or their passengers are unable to speak because of their injuries.

A set of data is sent to emergency services, including the identification of the vehicle and the exact location of the incident. This will help to reduce the amount of time it takes ambulance, fire or police services to reach the site - thus providing greater assistance to those involved.

Chief Executive Officer of innovITS Phil Pettitt said: "eCall is an important European technology initiative which aims to improve the emergency response time to road traffic accidents and one which is increasingly likely to be incorporated as standard fitment to vehicles marketed within Europe."

It is not only those who are involved in an accident that can make use of the technology, as drivers or passengers in a car equipped with eCall who witness an accident can report it and automatically call for assistance using the same system.

The testing service was launched at an industry seminar, which was followed by a demonstration of the product.

Mr Pettitt said he was "extremely pleased" with the launch event, noting representatives from regulatory authorities, the media, automotive and telecoms industries all attended the event.

He added that his organisation wants to offer "the first and only true end to end test capability". It first trialled the testing technology in November 2011 and has been working with its partners, including TRL, to create the hardware and software required to make it commercially available.

innovITS ADVANCE is the result of a collaboration between innovITS ADVANCE, TRL - a leader in research and development of ITS solutions  and strategic applications, and MIRA Ltd, one of the world's leading automotive design and development organisations.

Posted by Sarah Bailey