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IBM car tech to nab speeders

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IBM car tech to nab speeders
Published: April 14, 2005, 9:00 PM PDT
By Martin LaMonica
Staff Writer, CNET News.com

IBM has won a $125 million deal that will put "black boxes" in tens of thousands of cars in the United Arab Emirates.

The four-year deal, expected to be announced on Friday, calls for IBM to equip cars and trucks with a telematics device and GPS (Global Positioning System) that will provide information on a vehicle's location and speed to government agencies. It will link tens of thousands of vehicles in a nationwide wireless network. IBM asserts this will be the largest application of telematics--or the marriage of mobile communications and computing--as of yet.

If a driver exceeds the speed limit, a warning will be transmitted to the individual car via an on-board speaker. Autos will also be equipped with screens and voice-recognition software to access services planned for the future, IBM said.

Early prototypes for the tracking device, which is analogous to an airplane's "black box," are expected to be available next year. The plan is to install them in tens of thousands of vehicles by the end of next year, including emergency vehicles and government-owned truck fleets. The country has 2 million residents.

When the four-year contract runs out, IBM intends to compete for the second phase of the project, which will build off the initial infrastructure. The data gathered by the devices can be used not only by the government to monitor traffic habits, but also by commercial companies to offer consumer-related services such as rental cars and hotels.


IBM car tech to nab speeders | CNET News.com

posted by Prospector @ 8:30 AM