Jaguar Land Rover showcases connected vehicle technologies

Jaguar Land Rover showcased its latest connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) technologies as part of the UK Autodrive demonstrations taking place at  the UK's HORIBA MIRA proving ground.

Jaguar Land Rover is working with Ford and Tata Motors European Technical Centre to test connected technologies that will allow cars to talk to each other as well as the roadside infrastructure, such as traffic lights, in the future.

CAV technologies are one of Jaguar Land Rover’s research priorities. The company is creating a fleet of more than 100 research vehicles to develop and test a range of CAV technologies over the next four years. 

Tony Harper, head of research at Jaguar Land Rover, said: “We know that there’s a huge potential for these technologies in future vehicles around the world. Until now we have focused on communication between Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles, this collaborative approach is a major stepping stone towards all Connected and Autonomous Vehicles co-operating with each other in the future. Our aim is to give drivers exactly the right information at the right time and collaborations with other manufacturers are essential to help us deliver this commitment to our customers.”

Jaguar Land Rover says fully and semi-autonomous vehicle technologies will help drivers with both challenging and the more tedious parts of driving, whilst maintaining an enjoyable driving experience. The company says its vision is to make the autonomous car viable in the widest range of real life, on and off road driving environments and weather conditions.

CCAV technologies

• Advanced Highway Assist enables a vehicle to overtake other vehicles automatically as well as stay in its lane on the motorway without the driver having to touch either the steering wheel or the pedals.
• Electronic Emergency Brake Light Assist warns drivers when a vehicle ahead brakes severely or unexpectedly. This is useful when driving in dense fog or if the vehicle in front is out of sight.
• Green Light Optimal Speed Advisory connects a car to traffic lights advising the driver of the best driving speed required to reach the lights when they are on green. This will improve traffic flow, CO2 emissions as well as the driver’s experience.
• UK Autodrive is a consortium of leading technology and automotive businesses, local authorities and academic institutions working together on a three-year UK trial of self-driving vehicle and connected car technologies. It will also investigate other aspects of automated driving, including safety and cyber-security issues as well as the public’s acceptance for connected and autonomous vehicles.