General Motors’ first intelligent ”connected car” is due off the production lines within the next two years.

Global connected vehicle technology leader Cohda Wireless today welcomed news that General Motors’ first intelligent ‘connected car’ is due off the production lines within the next two years.

Delphi Automotive PLC, a company that will supply GM with connectivity technology to let cars “talk” with one another and provide drivers with critical safety information, uses Cohda’s safety applications software.

Earlier this month, General Motors CEO Mary Barra revealed at the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) World Congress in Detroit that Cadillac would build GM’s first V2V-equipped car in the 2017 Cadillac CTS in about two years. “We believe the CTS will be one of the most, if not the most, intelligent and connected production vehicles on the road,” said Ms. Barra. “It will talk to other V2V-equipped cars to avoid crashes; it will talk to V2I-equipped infrastructure to reduce congestion; and it’s 4G LTE connection and active safety features will give drivers piece of mind.”

The global car industry is actively embracing both Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) and Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I) implementations of connected car technology, which are collectively referred to as V2X.

One driver for this adoption in the US is a recent US Department of Transportation report containing preliminary estimates that the safety benefits of V2V safety applications such as Left Turn Assist (LTA) and Intersection Movement Assist (IMA) could prevent as many as 592,000 crashes and save 1083 lives per year.

Cohda Wireless CEO Paul Gray said General Motors’ announcement was an important milestone in the development of the V2X market. “Using Cohda’s software, Delphi will be first to market with V2V and V2I communication technology that significantly advances driver safety,” he said.

“Cohda is supplying the complete software stack for Delphi, comprising 10 safety apps including LTA and IMA, which the US Department of Transportation identifies as life-saving apps.

“The recent announcements by GM and Delphi move Cohda from the trial phase to the production stage in the market development of V2X technology.”

Delphi’s wireless vehicle communication technology extends the range of existing advanced driver assistance systems functionality. Radio signals transmit traffic data from car-to-car to alert drivers of potential road hazards; even those beyond the driver’s line of sight or out of the vehicle’s sensor range. This technology can signal to the driver a number of traffic situations ahead including road condition hazards, road work, emergency vehicle warning, stationary or slow-moving vehicles, traffic jams, accidents, as well as traffic signals or signage indicators.

“The ability to detect and signal to the driver of danger ahead is a significant leap toward improving driver safety and traffic management,” said Jeff Owens, chief technology officer, Delphi Automotive.