Audi says it will soon launch a system on its A4 and Q7 models that will see these vehicles provide their drivers with a countdown to traffic lights turning green.
Set to launch first in the United States in conjunction with Traffic Technology Services, the vehicle-to-infrastructure technology is unimaginatively dubbed “Traffic light information”.
This tech essentially enables the car to communicate with the infrastructure in select cities and metropolitan areas across the US, with the vehicle receiving real-time signal information from the advanced traffic management system that monitors traffic lights.
The link between the vehicle and infrastructure is routed via the on-board LTE data connection and the Traffic Technology Services servers.
While waiting at a connected traffic light, the driver information system in the instrument cluster (and the head-up-display, if fitted), indicates the time remaining until the signal will change to green.
“This feature represents Audi’s first step in vehicle-to-infrastructure integration,” said Pom Malhotra, general manager, connected vehicles at Audi.
“In the future, we could envision this technology integrated into vehicle navigation, start/stop functionality and [it could] even be used to help improve traffic flow in municipalities. These improvements could lead to better overall efficiency and shorter commuting times.”
And, indeed, closer-fought traffic light races…
