Avoiding Roadway Departure Crashes with an In-Vehicle Head-Up Display

Smartphones and other portable personal devices that integrate global positioning systems (GPS), Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), and advanced computing technologies have become more accessible due to affordable price, product innovation, and people’s desire to be connected. As more people own these devices, there are greater opportunities for data acquisition in Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), and for vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) communications. This study proposes a method of warning drivers of horizontal curves in order to prevent motor vehicles from running off the road. The prototype system is a smartphone-based application equipped with BLE technology and a head-up display (HUD). The system can track driver speed and compare vehicle position with curve locations in a real-time fashion. Messages can be wirelessly communicated from the smartphone to a receiving unit through BLE technology, and then displayed by HUD on the vehicle’s front windshield. In this way, drivers can receive alerts without looking away from their usual line of sight. System architecture, algorithm, and specific hardware are presented in detail. A field evaluation of the system is provided, and the overall results indicate relatively high accuracy.