Intermap Technologies has completed production of a dataset of 3D road vectors for Germany. Covering all classes of roads, the dataset features more than one million line kilometers of highly accurate road centerline position and elevation data for the entire country.
Derived from Intermap’s database of digital elevation models (DEMs) for all of Western Europe, the dataset can be used by the automotive industry to support advanced driver assistance systems’ (ADAS) safety and energy management applications that rely on accurate road vector geometry. Intermap is producing 3D road vectors for other European countries and will integrate them into a dataset covering all of Western Europe.
Intermap president and chief executive officer Brian Bullock said automobiles and commercial vehicles “can literally ‘know the road ahead’ when they are location aware.” He said the dataset can enable systems and functionality that automatically adjust engine and drive-line control units to reduce emissions, enhance fuel efficiency, and support safety applications.
Bullock said a joint study with Clemson University demonstrated that Intermap’s 3D road vectors can enhance energy efficiencies in hybrid electric vehicles through innovations like predictive road topology. Auburn University used Intermap’s road geometries as part of a GPS-based control study to reduce fuel consumption in the commercial trucking industry. Early results indicate a potential savings of as much as a billion gallons of diesel fuel per year.