First In-vehicle Emergency Calls over Wireless Networks Completed
Qualcomm Incorporated , a
leading developer and innovator of advanced wireless technologies,
products and services, and Hughes Telematics, Inc. (HTI), a leader in
providing next generation telematics solutions, have successfully
demonstrated the data transmission technology of the upcoming
pan-European, in-vehicle emergency call (eCall) standard over
commercial wireless networks at the 12th eSafety Forum Plenary meeting,
“eCall Summit”, held in Brussels, Belgium on October 29, 2009.
The use of eCall to deploy emergency assistance will save lives and
reduce the social burden of road accidents. The creation of eCall
standards and requirements has been triggered by the eSaftety Forum, an
initiative of the relevant stakeholders, brought together by the
European Commission. An eCall is generated either manually by vehicle
occupants, or automatically via activation of in-vehicle sensors, in
the case when an accident occurs. When activated, the eCall-enabled,
in-vehicle system establishes a 112-voice connection directly with the
relevant Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). At the same time, a
Minimum Set of Data- including key information about the accident such
as time, location and vehicle description is sent to the PSAP
operator receiving the voice call.
Technology provided by HTI and Qualcomm, including an eCall in-band
modem, was used to make a call to a prototype of an eCall-enabled PSAP
located in Germany. Once the voice call was established, the eCall
in-band modem protocol was used to transmit the Minimum Set of Data to
the PSAP. The eCall modem was fully integrated on the Qualcomm QSC6270™
chipset embedded in the demonstration unit.
“Safety and security is the cornerstone of our telematics offering,”
said Erik Goldman, president of Hughes Telematics, Inc. “Working with
Qualcomm to support this initiative in Europe confirms our commitment
to the global industry to enhance driver safety and provide a timely
and efficient response during emergency situations.”
“Qualcomm has spent the last several years developing eCall technology
and standards to further the public objective of helping to save lives
on roads,” explains Ed Tiedemann, senior vice president of engineering
at Qualcomm. “We are pleased to collaborate with Hughes Telematics on
developing and demonstrating an eCall solution that will ultimately
enable automakers to integrate this capability in all vehicles."
