The European GNSS Agency (GSA) is joining with other stakeholders to present the eCall emergency response system and other innovations that leverage space technology to make Europe’s roads smarter, greener and safer, at the ITS World Congress 2018, in the Bella Centre in Copenhagen on 18 September.
Volvo is the first carmaker to announce that it
is equipping its vehicles with the eCall emergency response system, which takes advantage of the precise positioning offered by the European space programmes Galileo and EGNOS to quickly alert emergency services in the event of a road accident, and automatically dial the European emergency number 112.
The eCall device in the Volvo vehicles, which uses the same location source as the in-vehicle navigation system, is manufactured by ACTIA Nordic in Sweden, is supported by the WirelessCar platform, and has been successfully tested by the NavCert eCall laboratory in Germany.
These stakeholders will join with the GSA in presenting the system at the ‘Space-driven innovation for smarter, greener and safer roads’ session at the ITS World Congress, in the Bella Centre’s Commercial Theatre at 17:00 on Tuesday, Sept 18.
Read this: eCall emergency alert system launched
Unveiling of eCall-equipped Volvo S60
A keynote address from Volvo and a panel discussion involving all the stakeholders will be followed by the unveiling of the Volvo S60, a demonstration of the car’s eCall system and an announcement for the press. This is a not-to-be-missed event for anybody interested in state-of-the-art automotive safety!
The readiness of automotive suppliers and technical services to equip vehicles with the new system was partially due to actions taken by the GSA and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, who launched a testing campaign and produced a joint report containing a set of guidelines to facilitate the implementation of eCall testing in compliance with the EU Regulation.
What is eCall?
eCall devices automatically dial the European emergency number 112 to alert rescue services in the event of an accident. The system sends the exact location to responders, along with the time of the incident and the direction of travel, even if the driver is unconscious or unable to make a phone call, thereby reducing the response time for road accidents and saving more lives. An eCall can also be triggered manually by pushing a button in the car, for example by a witness to a serious accident.
eCall only transmits data that is absolutely necessary when an accident occurs. Information only leaves the car in the event of a severe accident and is not stored any longer than necessary.
It is estimated that eCall will speed up emergency response times by 40% in urban areas and 50% in the countryside and reduce the number of fatalities by at least 4% and the number of severe injuries by 6%. You can find more information about eCall here.
Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European GNSS Agency (GSA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the GSA website (http://www.gsa.europa.eu).