This one isn't really a sustainability-related application of ICT (except in so far as car crashes don't do much for the planet or resource reduction), but it's (a) interesting and clever and (b) contains elements that could be used in an application that was aimed at promoting more sustainable as well as safer driving. Though I have to admit it looks a bit distracting to me - I hope they've got evidence that demonstrates there's an overall safety benefit.It uses the smartphone's camera to acquire visual data (the size of the car in front) and the accelerometer to add speed and acceleration data - I have to say I think that's a really clever use of the phone's capabilities. This one a 'best start-up' award, and for once it seems genuinely deserved.
Perhaps this is an idea whose time has come, because we've seen a few similar ones (like the Sprint safety app described here) in the last couple of weeks. There is a video here and a longer description here. Love the way that street names on the smartphone map are still in Hebrew, even though everything else has been translated.
mmm the navigation program with the map in hebrew is a different application.
ReplyDeleteI think the main point there is that this app can run in the background (so you can hear music or use navigation) and still give you warning...
actually this is a very smart and cool idea!
(they also explain this in the movie on youtube).
I had a subsequent conversation with the company, and ended up liking this more. There is a dashboard that reports on an individual's driving, which could be further adapted to encourage 'greener' driving. This is the first example of a product which uses the sensor capabilities of a smartphone to replicate and improve on the capabilities of much more complicated and expensive telematics box. I'm confident that there will be sustainability applications built on this platform.
ReplyDelete...and the company is a CES 'honoree' for 2012 in the Mobile Apps category.
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