Connected Mercedes cars to transmit road condition data in Sweden

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An innovative scheme in Sweden sees Mercedes cars in use collecting road condition data for the country’s transport authority. The cars carry 350 sensors and provide three different data packages. 

The current measurements of Sweden’s national transport authority Trafikverket provide detailed information on the condition of the road surface and the road area and show where there are deficiencies. This information is used to plan measures and monitor the condition of the roads. 

However, there is no information on the changes in road surface and pavement conditions that occur between the yearly measurements by Trafikverket. The cooperation with Mercedes-Benz is particularly important in order to track these changes and tackle necessary reparations in a timely manner, the authority says. The Mercedes-Benz vehicles are connected via cloud and collect relevant information on the road surface with their high-performing sensors. This information is transmitted directly to Trafikverket. 

“If we retrieve anonymized vehicle data from connected cars, we should be able to make better decisions and thus improve road maintenance,” says Fredrik Lindström, national coordinator for road surface measurements at Trafikverket.

In 2023, Trafikverket started a project to see if it was possible to use existing sensors that are integrated in ordinary connected passenger cars to collect information about pavement damage. Trafikverket has now signed agreements with three players, including Mercedes-Benz Sweden, to both develop the solution and deliver data. 

The project starts off by collecting data complementary to standard road surface measurements such as acute damages (for example, potholes), from weather related sources of damage – such as severe frosts and thaws.  

Three different units in the Mercedes-Benz Group are collaborating on the project: Mercedes-Benz Sverige AB, Mercedes-Benz Connectivity Services GmbH, and Mercedes-Benz AG. Data from up to 350 different sensors available on Mercedes-Benz standard cars delivers three different data products to Trafikverket: 

• Surface Events measures the condition of the surface in terms of potholes and cracks and how these develop over time. 
• Waviness measures the waviness of the surface over longer segments. 
• Hazard Warning sends information on local or temporary troubles such as fog, slippery roads, rain or stationary vehicles. 

The information used for the project is sent fully anonymized and only from those cars whose owners have agreed to share data via the car's "Mercedes me" app. 

"The project is absolutely unique and offers an interesting opportunity to be involved in working towards a higher level of road safety. This initiative by Trafikverket allows the technology in our cars to benefit the society as a whole. In addition, our and the authority's experts will work closely together and gain valuable knowledge from each other,” says Daniel Deparis, Head of Urban Mobility Solutions at Mercedes-Benz AG.

The project is carried out as a strategic collaboration project between Trafikverket, the Swedish Transport Administration, and Vinnova's strategic innovation program InfraSweden. Through this collaboration, the parties will be able to take advantage of each other's knowledge, resources and experience from leading and driving innovation and development in order to achieve the project's goals and benefits faster. The suppliers are Mercedes Benz Sweden, NIRA Dynamics and Univrses.  

The partnership aims to leverage Univrses’ AI software, ‘3DAI City’, to digitize and manage roadside infrastructure.  

The project runs until 2024.