Jaguar Land Rover Developing a Pothole Alert System

Potholes are among the leading causes of car accidents and one of the most common road hazards, causing severe damage to vehicles and putting public safety at risk. They are a huge nuisance for drivers in the United States, with roadways in many states being extremely worn down and in desperate need of repair, but a solution to this dreaded problem ruining the driving experience might be on a horizon, with Jaguar Land Rover developing a system that can detect potholes and help drivers avoid this road hazard.

The British car maker has launched a "Pothole Alert" research project, fitting several test vehicles with technology that allows them to locate potholes and determine how severe they are, and share that information with other cars, as well as with traffic management systems. The "Pothole Alert" system relies on connected-car technology, which is being developed by many global automakers, aimed at improving traffic safety by providing automatic notifications of crashes and other road hazards using a wireless local area network.

The test vehicles, which include the Range Rover Evoque and the Discovery Sport, are equipped with a camera mounted on the vehicle's windshield, which will scan the road surface and take pictures of the potholes it detects. In addition to potholes, the system can identify other imperfections on the road surface, such as raised manhole covers and broken drains.

After detecting a pothole, the system uploads the information to the cloud, including how severe it is and exact coordinates, so that other drivers traveling along the same route can be warned in a timely manner in order to be able to adjust their speed and avoid the potholes. What's more, the system is connected with the Coventry City Council, notifying authorities of the potential road hazards, so that they can try and repair the potholes as soon as possible.

On top of warning other drivers of potholes, the system can also activate the MagneRide adaptive suspension system that Jaguar's test vehicles are equipped with, adjusting the car's suspension so that it can reduce the impact force and provide a more comfortable ride.

"Our MagneRide equipped Range Rover Evoque and Discovery Sport vehicles feature sophisticated sensors that allow the vehicle to profile the road surface under the wheels and identify potholes, raised manholes and broken drain covers. By monitoring the motion of the vehicle and changes in the height of the suspension, the car is able to continuously adjust the vehicle's suspension characteristics, giving passengers a more comfortable ride over uneven and damaged road surfaces," said Dr Mike Bell, Global Connected Car Director, Jaguar Land Rover.

Although this system is only at an early stage of development, it is expected to become a standard feature in mass-produced vehicles in the near future, as connected-car and autonomous driving technologies continue to advance at a very fast pace. It is a system that promises to help prevent accidents and improve road safety significantly, and cut pothole damage costs, which are estimated at over $6 billion a year in the U.S.