These Smart Roads Could Change the Future of Driving

Summary

The script explores the future of transportation with emerging smart road technologies. Integrated Roadways' Smart Pavement uses embedded sensors to detect vehicle data and alert emergency services, potentially reducing accidents. V2X technology enables vehicle-to-everything communication, enhancing safety. Self-healing asphalt and electrified roads in Sweden and Israel are also highlighted, suggesting a future where roads repair themselves and charge electric vehicles, revolutionizing driving and reducing reliance on gas stations.

Takeaways

• 🔧 Technology is becoming pervasive, with innovations like smart refrigerators and watches.
• 🚗 Smart roads are being developed to enhance safety and efficiency.
• 📡 Integrated Roadways is testing Smart Pavement in Colorado to detect vehicle positions and accidents.
• 🚑 Smart Pavement can alert emergency services in case of accidents.
• 🔗 V2X technology enables vehicles to communicate with each other and with road infrastructure.
• 🛤️ V2X could significantly reduce accidents and fatalities when widely implemented.
• 🔨 Dutch scientists are testing self-repairing roads using steel wool and induction machines.
• ⏳ This self-repairing technology could double the lifespan of roads.
• 🔋 Sweden has introduced an electrified road that charges electric vehicles as they drive.
• ⚡ Other countries like Israel, France, the U.K., and South Korea are also testing wireless charging roads.
• 🚙 Smart roads can potentially eliminate the need for gasoline-powered cars and reduce road maintenance.

Q & A

What is the significance of smart roads in the context of modern technology?

Smart roads are significant as they represent the integration of technology into infrastructure to enhance safety, efficiency, and potentially reduce the need for gasoline-powered cars and gas stations.

How does the Smart Pavement technology work as described by Integrated Roadways?

Smart Pavement is a system of concrete slabs embedded with digital technology and fiber-optic mesh that detects the position, speed, and weight of vehicles, allowing a computer to calculate and respond to incidents like crashes or vehicles veering off the road.

What is the purpose of the V2X technology in the context of smart roads?

V2X, or Vehicle to Everything, is a short-range wireless technology that enables vehicles to communicate with each other and with infrastructure like stoplights and guardrails, potentially warning drivers of hazards and improving road safety.

How does the self-healing asphalt technology work to prevent potholes?

The self-healing asphalt technology involves mixing steel wool into the asphalt. An induction machine creates an oscillating magnetic field that induces an electric current in the steel wool, heating it and melting the bitumen to repair cracks that could lead to potholes.

What is the potential impact of implementing V2X technology throughout Colorado according to the consulting firm?

The consulting firm suggests that implementing V2X technology throughout Colorado could lead to a significant reduction in car accidents and deaths, estimating more than 85,000 fewer accidents and 300 fewer deaths over 20 years.

How does the electrified road technology in Sweden work for charging electric vehicles?

The electrified road in Sweden has a track in the center of the road. When an electric vehicle drives over it, an arm attached to the vehicle connects to the track, allowing the road to charge the vehicle's battery as it drives.

What is the advantage of using steel wool in the self-healing asphalt?

The steel wool acts as a conductive material that, when heated by an induced electric current, melts the bitumen between the stones, effectively sealing cracks and extending the road's lifespan.

What are the safety measures in place to prevent electrocution on the electrified road in Sweden?

The electricity on the electrified road is on a separate rail about 5 centimeters below the surface and only flows when a car is attached to that section of the road, ensuring that pedestrians are not at risk of electrocution.

How does the wireless charging road technology work as demonstrated by Electreon?

Electreon's technology involves embedding copper coils in the road that are connected to the electrical grid. When an electric vehicle with copper plates passes over them, the interaction between the electromagnetic fields generates power to charge the vehicle.

What is the broader potential impact of smart roads on the future of transportation?

Smart roads could transform transportation by reducing or eliminating the need for gasoline-powered cars and gas stations, decreasing the frequency of road repairs, and potentially saving lives through increased safety measures.

What is the current status of the smart road technologies mentioned in the script?

As of the script's recording, Integrated Roadways is piloting Smart Pavement in Denver and testing a 1km stretch on Highway 285 in Colorado. V2X technology is also being tested in Colorado with the first stretch expected to be completed in 2021. Self-healing asphalt has been used in the Netherlands, and electrified road technology has debuted in Sweden with further tests in other countries.

Outlines

00:00

🛣️ Smart Roads for Safer and Self-Repairing Infrastructure

The script introduces the concept of smart roads and their potential to revolutionize transportation safety and infrastructure. It highlights three emerging technologies: Smart Pavement by Integrated Roadways, which uses embedded sensors to detect vehicle movements and alert emergency services in case of accidents; V2X (Vehicle to Everything) communication technology that allows vehicles to communicate with each other and traffic infrastructure to prevent accidents; and self-healing asphalt that incorporates steel wool to repair cracks and extend the road's lifespan. The first technology is being tested in Colorado, with the potential to significantly reduce accidents and fatalities, while the latter is already in use in the Netherlands and could lead to the development of roads that double their lifespan and even charge electric vehicles.

05:02

🔋 Electrified Roads: A Future for Charging Electric Vehicles

This paragraph discusses the advancements in electrified roads, which are designed to charge electric vehicles while they are in motion. The script mentions the world's first electrified road in Sweden, which uses a track system for direct current transfer, and the wireless charging technology developed by Electreon, which uses electromagnetic fields to generate power. The potential widespread adoption of such technology could eliminate the need for traditional charging stations, reduce the reliance on gasoline-powered cars and gas stations, and contribute to a safer and more efficient transportation system.

Keywords

💡Smart Roads

Smart Roads refer to the integration of advanced technologies into road infrastructure to enhance safety, efficiency, and maintenance. In the video, it is the central theme around which various technologies are discussed, such as Smart Pavement and V2X systems, which aim to prevent accidents and improve communication between vehicles and road infrastructure.

💡Integrated Roadways

Integrated Roadways is a company mentioned in the script that is pioneering the development of Smart Pavement. This technology involves embedding concrete slabs with digital technology and fiber-optic mesh to detect and respond to vehicle movements and potential accidents, as demonstrated in their pilot project on Highway 285 in Colorado.

💡Smart Pavement

Smart Pavement is a system that uses fiber-optic sensors to detect the position, speed, and weight of vehicles. It is designed to alert emergency services in case of accidents or deviations from the road. The script highlights its potential to transform road safety by enabling real-time monitoring and response to incidents.

💡V2X (Vehicle to Everything)

V2X is a short-range wireless communication technology that allows vehicles to communicate with each other and with infrastructure like traffic lights and guardrails. The script explains how this technology can preemptively warn drivers of potential hazards by sending audio or visual messages, thereby contributing to the overarching goal of smart roads to enhance safety.

💡Pervious Asphalt

Pervious Asphalt is a type of road surface material made of stones held together with minimal bitumen. It is highlighted in the script as a base for self-repairing roads in the Netherlands. The addition of steel wool to this material allows for the induction of electric currents that can heat and melt the bitumen, effectively sealing cracks and preventing potholes.

💡Induction Machine

An Induction Machine is used in the context of the script to refer to a device that creates an oscillating magnetic field, inducing electric currents in conductive materials like steel wool within the asphalt. This process heats the steel, melting the bitumen and repairing cracks, thereby extending the road's lifespan, as demonstrated in the Dutch study.

💡Electrified Road

An Electrified Road is a novel concept where the road itself has the capability to charge electric vehicles as they drive over it. The script describes the world's first such road in Sweden, which uses a track in the center of the road that connects to an arm on the vehicle, allowing for dynamic charging.

💡Electreon

Electreon is an Israeli company featured in the script that has developed a wireless charging road technology. By embedding copper coils in the road and having electric vehicles equipped with copper plates, the interaction between the electromagnetic fields generates power for charging. This technology is being tested on public roads and could revolutionize electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

💡Self-Repairing Roads

Self-Repairing Roads are a concept where roads have the ability to fix cracks and prevent potholes autonomously. The script explains how Dutch scientists have developed a method using steel wool and an induction machine to heat and melt bitumen, effectively sealing cracks and doubling the road's lifespan.

💡Bitumen

Bitumen is a sticky black binder used in road construction to hold together aggregates like stones in asphalt. The script discusses its role in the creation of pervious asphalt and how its properties can be manipulated using an induction machine to repair cracks in self-repairing roads.

💡Wireless Charging Roads

Wireless Charging Roads are a type of smart road technology that allows electric vehicles to charge wirelessly while driving. The script mentions Electreon's implementation of this technology in Sweden, where copper coils in the road interact with copper plates on the vehicle to generate a charging current.

Highlights

Technology is increasingly integrated into everyday objects, with smart roads being a notable example of innovation in infrastructure.

Smart roads are being developed to improve safety and functionality, with capabilities ranging from self-repair to life-saving alerts.

Integrated Roadways is testing Smart Pavement in Colorado, which uses embedded digital technology and fiber-optic mesh to detect vehicle data.

Smart Pavement can calculate if a car has crashed or veered off the road, and alert emergency services accordingly.

The V2X system allows vehicles to communicate with each other and infrastructure, potentially reducing accidents and improving traffic flow.

V2X technology can send warnings to drivers about traffic conditions, enhancing road safety.

Colorado is expected to complete its first stretch of road with V2X technology in 2021, aiming to significantly reduce car accidents and fatalities.

Scientists in the Netherlands are developing self-repairing roads using pervious asphalt and steel wool to prevent cracks and potholes.

An induction machine can be used to heat and melt bitumen in steel-filled asphalt, effectively repairing cracks and extending the road's lifespan.

The Netherlands has successfully implemented self-repairing asphalt on several roads, with potential for further applications.

Smart roads could potentially charge electric vehicles while stopped at traffic lights, addressing range anxiety for EV drivers.

Sweden has introduced the world's first electrified road for charging cars, using a track system connected to the vehicle.

The electrified road system in Sweden ensures safety by having the electricity flow only when a car is connected to the track.

Other companies, like Electreon, are developing wireless charging roads using electromagnetic fields to power electric vehicles.

Smart roads have the potential to transform driving by reducing the reliance on gasoline-powered cars and gas stations.

The development of smart roads could lead to a significant reduction in the need for frequent road repairs and improve overall road safety.

Smart roads represent a convergence of technology and infrastructure that could save lives and reshape transportation.

Transcripts

[ ♪INTRO ]

Technology infuses nearly everything these days. We have smart refrigerators, smart watches,

smart glasses… It might not seem like we need any more smart stuff.

But some of these technologies can be really useful, and that’s especially true when

it comes to smart roads.

Really. There’s a traffic jam of ideas in the pipeline to make infrastructure more intelligent,

and to help roads do everything from repair themselves to save lives.

Here are three emerging technologies that give new meaning to the term “street smart.”

First, some companies are working on roads that can prevent accidents and help drivers

who have been in a crash.

There are a few ways to do this, and some of them are being tested in Colorado.

One strategy is being tested by a company called Integrated Roadways.

In 2018, they announced that Colorado’s Department of Transportation had granted them

a contract to install Smart Pavement on a roughly 1km stretch of Highway 285.

Smart Pavement is a system of concrete slabs embedded with digital technology and fiber-optic mesh.

These fibers detect the position, speed, and weight of vehicles.

And once it’s installed, a computer communicating with the highway will be able to calculate

if a car crashed, skidded off the road, or just pulled aside to take a photo of the landscape.

If there’s been an accident, or if a car veered off the highway, routers inside the

road will be able to alert emergency services to rush to the scene.

Integrated Roadways has already piloted this pavement on a section of road in Denver, and

it’s currently collecting information on about 7500 vehicles per day.

So if their new, roughly 1km test goes well, this kind of technology could start popping

up all over the place.

It is worth noting, though, that Smart Pavement isn’t the only way to make a safer road.

There’s also a system called V2X, which is short for “vehicle to everything.”

It’s short-range wireless technology that allows vehicles to communicate with each other

and with objects like stoplights and guardrails.

If the network of objects senses something like a bunch of vehicles decelerating, it

can send an audio or visual message to the display screens on nearby cars, warning drivers

to proceed with caution.

For this system to be effective, both the objects and the vehicles need to have V2X

capability. But some new cars already have this installed, and other brands plan to add

it to their future models.

Colorado is also testing out this system, and their first stretch of road with this

tech is expected to be completed in 2021.

According to one consulting firm working with the state’s Department of Transportation,

this tech could make a big impact, too.

They say that, if it were implemented throughout Colorado, it could lead to more than 85,000

fewer car accidents and 300 fewer deaths over 20 years.

Now, traffic is bad, but potholes can be a real pain, too. They’re not fun to drive

over, and the really bad ones can even damage vehicles.

So in 2010, scientists in the Netherlands tested a potential solution: build roads that

can almost fix themselves.

To do this, they started with a type of pervious asphalt commonly used in the Netherlands,

which is made of stones held together with as little bitumen as possible.

Bitumen is a sticky black binder. This kind of asphalt is great for various reasons, but

by itself, it still gets cracks and potholes. They happen when the bitumen shrinks and detaches

from the stones it’s holding onto.

So next, the researchers mixed in tiny pieces of steel wool — the kind you might use to

scour burned hamburger off your pans.

They took this mixture and used it to pave a section of road. Then, in 2014, after letting

it sit for a while, they drove an induction machine over it.

The machine created an oscillating magnetic field, which induced an electric current in

the conductive steel wool.

The electricity heated the steel and melted the bitumen between the stones, and that repaired

cracks that might have eventually caused potholes.

The scientists say that running the induction machine over steel-filled asphalt every 4

years can double the lifespan of the road — taking it from 8 to10 years to 16 to 20.

The Netherlands has already used this technology on a dozen other roads, too.

And according to one of the scientists, that’s not all this tech can do. It may also be possible

to send energy through steel in the pavement, so electric vehicles could charge while at a stoplight.

That technology is in the early stages, but car-charging roads are already rolling out elsewhere.

In 2018, the world’s first electrified road for charging cars debuted in Sweden. And the

way it works is pretty straightforward.

#For this road, engineers laid down about 2 kilometers of track in the center of the

road, similar to the kind you see on light rail.

When you drive your electric vehicle on it, an arm attached to the bottom of the vehicle

reaches down and connects to the track. Then, as you drive, the road charges your battery!

If you switch lanes, the arm will disconnect, and if you stop, the current will, too.

This system is set up so that the electricity itself is on a separate rail about 5 centimeters

below the surface, and so that it only flows when a car is attached to that section of the road.

That way, people can cross the street without getting electrocuted. Which is always nice.

Still, even if the whole area flooded with water or something, the organization behind

the project says the current isn’t enough to hurt pedestrians.

Now, Sweden is thinking of applying this idea to the 20,000 kilometers of highways throughout the country.

But again, this method isn’t the only way to do this.

Other companies are testing wireless charging roads.

For example, an Israeli company called Electreon has successfully created a driving track studded

with copper coils that are connected to the electrical grid.

When an electric vehicle outfitted with copper plates passes over them, the interaction between

the two electromagnetic fields generates power to charge the vehicle.

In 2019, the company announced it would install this technology on a public road in Sweden.

And France, the U.K., and South Korea are also testing similar tech.

One of the biggest concerns people have about electric vehicles is that there aren’t enough

places to charge their batteries. But if roads themselves charged cars, that barrier would

basically disappear.

So while smart roads may seem unnecessary at first, they could eventually transform

the way we drive.

They could potentially reduce or eliminate the need for gasoline-powered cars and gas

stations. They could reduce the need for frequent road repairs. And they could even save our lives.

Thanks for watching this episode of SciShow! And special thanks to our patrons on Patreon.

We say it a lot, but your support really does mean a lot to us, and we couldn’t make this

show without you.

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[ ♪OUTRO ]