Remember when we were told that by the year 2000 we would have cars that drove themselves? In the future, commuters would be able to relax and enjoy the view as their car chauffeured them off to work. Whatever happened to that anyway? Well perhaps, road-trains or “platooning” is the first step in that direction. Although the idea has been floating around the automotive industry as early as the 1930s, platooning is the new buzzword for moving trains of vehicles to reduce congestion and improve fuel economy.
The SARTRE Project, is a collaboration of several companies, including Volvo, currently developing strategies and technologies that will allow platoons of vehicles to drive themselves on public highway systems. The SARTRE team is currently developing the first tests on these systems.
Using this system, vehicles would automatically monitor the distance, speed, and direction of the car immediately in front of it and mimic its actions.
When the technology is commercialized, a driver equipped with the system would use an in-vehicle navigation screen to find the nearest platoon and drive to the end of it. The car would then connect wirelessly to the platoon and automatically begin controlling braking, acceleration, and steering.
Major automotive companies are currently working on a common communication standard that will allow platoon-ready vehicles to communicate with each other. Safety-related embedded systems will be an important aspect of this technology. The ISO 26262 Functional Safety standard Automotive Electric/Electronic Systems addresses the recommendations for safety-related software testing and verification.
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