Smart moving: A SPaT-based advanced driving-assistance system

Recent studies show that intersections account for around 43% of all traffic accidents and enhanced communication between traffic signals and vehicles can possibly lead to a 50% reduction in such accidents. With the advancement of dedicated short range communications (DSRC) technologies such as IEEE 1609 (Wireless Access in Vehicular Environments, WAVE), it has started to bring such communication solutions to reality; however, to cope with inherent complexity at intersections, more factors need to be considered to complete the chosen solutions. In this paper, we propose an advanced driving-assistance system (ADAS) which utilizes a dual-mode communication mechanism to provide data at a greater range than DSRC-only systems, thereby achieving significant performance improvement in Signal Phase and Timing (SPaT) applications. When vehicles approach an intersection, they are individually recommended to travel at a safe speed, which not only increases driving safety, but also results in a smooth traffic flow with lower fuel consumption.