European context

euroFOT is an EU research project under the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for research and technological development. It is particularly relevant to the European Commission White paper  European transport policy for 2010: time to decide , which was published in 2001 targeting a 50% reduction of fatalities on European roads by 2010.

European competitiveness   Lisbon objectives

Intelligent vehicle systems have been the subject of significant research and development in Europe in recent years. This has created a world leadership of European industries in the sector, enabling automotive manufacturers and systems suppliers to introduce advanced driver assistance functions into the market based on robust sensors and smart vehicle controls.

Several brands of passenger cars can now be equipped with the option of intelligent vehicle systems. Large commercial vehicles such as buses and trucks also benefit, and the driver-support functions are likely to be particularly valuable for professional drivers travelling long distances.

euroFOT is expected to boost the competitiveness of this IVS industry, as one of the main objectives of the project is to create early publicity for these innovative technologies, and thus to boost market penetration.

Safer, smarter and greener cars

Road safety, energy efficiency and traffic congestion are the main challenges currently facing European transportation, according to the Intelligent Car Initiative (ICI) launched by the European Commission in 2006. The report, which won wide approval in the European Parliament in 2008, calls for more efforts from industry to promote ICT-based solutions in transport.

In this context, euroFOT aims to demonstrate the effectiveness of and encourage the deployment of intelligent vehicle systems on European roads. The results should help boost the take up of intelligent vehicle technologies in new cars and trucks by raising the visibility of their contribution to better driving.