Smart Roads: IBI Group Part of the Innovative ACTIVE-AURORA Research Project
Date
January 24, 2018
Calgary, AB (Jan 24, 2018) – In an increasingly connected world, private and public organizations are constantly developing more effective ways to inform the general public about issues that can directly affect their daily lives. IBI Group is currently involved with many Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) projects that target transportation infrastructure across the world, with the aim of improving capacity, efficiency, safety, productivity, sustainability and modal connectivity. We are proud to be working in partnership with the University of Alberta, the University of British Columbia, the Governments of Canada and Alberta, the City of Edmonton and other academic and industry partners on ACTIVE-AURORA, the first connected vehicle test bed in Canada.
The ACTIVE-AURORA project consists of four test beds and two laboratory test environments. ACTIVE (Alberta Co-operative Transportation Infrastructure and Vehicular Environment) is the component located in Alberta, and AURORA (Automotive Test Bed for Reconfigurable and Optimized Radio Access) is located in Vancouver. These test beds feature sensors within the roads that feed valuable information via wireless technology to travelers in real time; this allows a variety of stakeholders to create software applications, test hardware components, simulate and model tolls, and collect and analyze data from the test beds.
The Albertan test beds are located in Edmonton on Whitemud Drive, Anthony Henday Drive and 23rd Avenue. Car manufacturers are already testing these safety features so this technology will soon become more attainable to the general consumer. In the not-so-distant future, the assumption is that autonomous cars will use this valuable information to navigate roads safely and efficiently.
The information collected on these Edmonton test bed roads includes:
- pedestrian alerts;
- notification of unsafe speed while approaching a curve;
- a warning about following other vehicles too closely;
- notification of high-collision locations;
- notification of recommended driving speeds depending on the current traffic conditions; and
- whether or not drivers will be able to safely drive through an intersection on a green light before it turns red.
The unique Albertan climate provides added benefits to the ACTIVE research project, as we experience freeze/thaw cycles and sensors are subjected to harsher conditions and use items such as salt on our road surfaces. It is also the only test bed in this kind of climate in the world. This real-world exposure will allow the collection of valuable data as well as a space for the development, testing, demonstration and ultimate commercialization of the latest innovations in active traffic management.
The ACTIVE-AURORA test bed infrastructure provides the University of Alberta and University of British Columbia with the ability to collaborate with other organizations from across Canada and around the world. As part of IBI Group’s ongoing collaboration with the U of A on this initiative, we are proud to participate as an industry partner for the ACTIVE AURORA Connected Vehicle Test Bed.
For more information on this project, please reach out to Jonathan Darton, Associate Director | Practice Lead, Systems Engineering, Systems.
