Samenvatting
Automatic crash messages can reduce fatalities by expediting the dispatchof appropriate emergency services. The European eCall initiative is a critical step to this end. Emergency phone calls are now complemented by data-only Automatic Crash Notification (ACN) messages. ACN sends data messages via an embedded data communications unit (DCU) that is cheaper, more robust, and likelier to transmit a message successfully in poor coverage areas than a mobile phone. The DCU supports other applications as well that enhance vehicle safety and performance. This paper will discuss the evolution of automatic crash messaging and the broad implications in-vehicle data communications. For the covering abstract see ITRD E134653.