Wraparound video image of a vehicle

New driver assistance technology developed by Fujitsu Laboratories, provides a complete wrap-around view of a vehicle’s perimeter in real-time, enhancing the driver’s field of view and improving driving safety by assisting the driver in a variety of situations, such as parking, passing on a narrow street, and seeing around corners at intersections with poor sightlines.

The new technology comprises a MB86R01 SoC graphics chip for automobiles from Fujitsu Microelectronics, which supports the OpenGL ES, a general purpose embeddable image-processing platform; and a video-processing chip that combines video images from four camera installed around the vehicle’s perimeter. As a vehicle view assistance system, this achieves real-time operation, with 30 millisecond video processing time.

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A robotic underwater vehicle that can hover in place like a helicopter has been developed by researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The new craft, Odyssey IV, is the latest in a series of small, inexpensive artificially intelligent submarines developed over the last two decades by The MIT Sea Grant College Program’s Autonomous Underwater Vehicles laboratory.

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A Cambridge University invention which was kept a closely-guarded secret because of the hidden advantage it offered to a Formula 1 racing team is now available for widespread use.

For years, a vehicle suspension system device known as J-Damper, was carefully codenamed and concealed to prevent it from being copied by rivals.

McLaren agreed an exclusive right with the University to exploit the technology, but confidentiality restrictions ensured that other F1 teams were kept in the dark. Now, the confidentiality agreement has been lifted, the secret of the J-Damper can be revealed.

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Fraunhofer scientists are developing a high-performance battery for use in hybrid vehicles.

Hybrid technology combines the advantages of combustion engines and electric motors. A hybrid propulsion system switches over to generator operation when the brakes go on, producing electric current that is temporarily stored in a battery. The electric motor uses the current when starting up. While this yields savings, particularly in urban traffic, hybrid technology has always had a storage problem.

The aim of the ‘Electromobility Fleet Test’ project, which was launched by Volkswagen and Germany’s federal Ministry for the Environment BMU, along with several other partners, is to develop an energy storage device based on lithium-polymer accumulator technology suitable for use in vehicles.

ISIT scientist Dr. Gerold Neumann, explained: “This module has to be able to withstand the harsh environmental conditions it will encounter in a hybrid vehicle and above all it must guarantee high operational reliability and a long service life.”

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Using a specially-coated form of clothing material Goretex, scientists at Monash University have developed an electrically-generated fuel cell which could make the next generation of hybrid cars more reliable and cheaper to build.

The team of Monash scientists have designed and tested an air-electrode, where a fine layer – just 0.4 of a micron thick, or about 100 times thinner than a human hair – of highly conductive plastic is depositied on the breathable fabric. The conductive plastic acts as both the fuel cell electrode and catalyst.

Dr Bjorn Winther-Jensen, Monash University, explained: “The same way as waste vapour is drawn out of this material to make hikers more comfortable and less prone to hypothermia, so it is able the ‘breathe’ oxygen into our fuel cell and into contact with the conductive plastic.”

Professor Doug MacFarlane, Monash University, continued: “The benefits for the motoring industry and for motorists are that the new design removes the need for platinum, which acts as the catalyst and is currently central to the manufacturing process.

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Engineering solutions firm Ricardo, has unveiled a research prototype vehicle that demonstrates the company’s patent pending electromagnetic linear actuator technology, which it says offers a low cost route to robust and highly efficient Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) and Dry Clutch Transmission (DCT) vehicles, capable of providing increased fuel economy and lower emissions.

The development vehicle is based on an Opel Corsa 1.2l petrol automated manual transmission, in which the control and actuation system of the original Easytronic system has been replaced with Ricardo’s patent-pending electromagnetic linear actuator technology which can be multiplexed in order to operate both the clutch control and gear selection functions.

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Drivers that try and push their cars to the limit, could find they start to push back.

Nissan Motor Co’s ‘ECO Pedal’ system, promoted as both green and safe – makes the accelerator pedal press upwards when it senses motorists are speeding up too quickly.

The system, which Nissan says will be available next year, calculates the most efficient rate of acceleration in a vehicle based on how fast fuel is being burned among other factors, when it deems the motorist is exceeding the most efficient rate, the accelerator pedal pushes back. A meter on the dashboard flashes and changes colours to alert the driver.

According to Nissan, the system is designed to help drivers become more fuel efficient; implementing it could help drivers improve fuel efficiency by five to 10 per cent.

There is an option for switching the system off.

An emission-free and environmentally sustainable automotive coating system has been developed by Australia’s CSIRO and Dulux Powder Coatings.

The Australian automotive industry uses about 10 million litres of liquid paint a year to coat the surfaces of new vehicles, including putting decorative finishes on plastic components, however, traditional wet paints have disadvantages. They do not have a high rate of spray transfer onto plastic parts – around 70 per cent is lost as waste, and contain solvents that release volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) to the atmosphere.

The goal of the project was to overcome a long-term sustainability issue for the automotive, plastics and furniture industries by replacing wet paint finishes on heat-sensitive substances, such as plastic components, with zero-waste powder coating technology.

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A semi-autonomous ground vehicle developed by BAE Systems is being used by the UK Border Agency to patrol Calais port in search of illegal immigrants.

Born out of the concept to help protect British troops on foot patrol in Iraq and Afghanistan, the robot, codenamed Hero, is roughly the size of a briefcase with a wheel at each corner. Equipped with lights and cameras, the vehicle has been successfully checking beneath the 10,000 heavy goods vehicles, coaches and trailers that pass through the port each week on the way to the UK.

Richard Williams, civil autonomous systems director, BAE Systems, explained: “Some people will use any means to get past immigration checks, and catching them can be extremely hazardous.

“It’s a backbreaking, dirty and often dangerous job to look under every truck, and with 10,000 of the vehicles each week boarding ferries, its physically impossible for UK Border Agency staff to personally check them all.”

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British firm Axon Automotive has combined a 500cc engine with a low-weight body to create an affordable 100mpg carbon composite passenger car.

The company has replaced the steel or aluminium traditionally used for vehicle frames, with recycled carbon fibre composites, which are as strong as steel, but 60 per cent lighter. Using carbon materials throughout the car body has a huge impact on the power-to-weight ratio, it means acceptable overall performance can be achieved with a much smaller, lighter and more frugal engine.

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