Vehicular sensing: Emergence of a massive urban scanner

Abstract

Vehicular sensing is emerging as a powerful mean to collect information using the variety of sensors that equip modern vehicles. These sensors range from simple speedometers to complex video capturing systems capable of performing image recognition. The advent of connected vehicles makes such information accessible nearly in real-time and creates a sensing network with a massive reach, amplified by the inherent mobility of vehicles. In this paper we discuss several applications that rely on vehicular sensing, using sensors such as the GPS receiver, windshield cameras, or specific sensors in special vehicles, such as a taximeter in taxi cabs. We further discuss connectivity issues related to the mobility and limited wireless range of an infrastructure-less network based only on vehicular nodes. © 2012 ICST Institute for Computer Science, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering.