Will Fords Become Walking Radars ?

© JUSTIN SULLIVAN/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/Archives

Ford could well become the bête noire of all distracted or slightly zealous motorists. Published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on July 18, 2024, the American brand has patented a technology based on on-board cameras capable of detecting speeding and sending the information to the authorities directly from the road.

Speeding or overzealousness, according to information from Numerama, Ford will make its vehicles real radars on wheels. The brand's cars could become the controllers of tomorrow. While driving, they would be able to notify the authorities of the speeding of other users, without even the driver doing anything. The on-board cameras would be able to photograph vehicles exceeding the speed limit. Thanks to an Internet connection, the images collected could then be sent to a police car which would then only have to fine the vehicle.

As indicated by Motor Authority at the end of July, this patent would provide a new solution on ” systems and methods for detecting speeding “. The American manufacturer's technology would aim to improve road safety. An argument that does not pass muster with everyone, not allowing the importance of the concepts of private life and individual freedoms to be supplanted.

In France, this new means of ticketing is not expected to see the light of day right away. On our soil, the standards surrounding radars are still strict in order to avoid “false positives”. Thus, it would be easy to denounce the ticketing for procedural defects. However, laws occasionally cast doubt on these safeguards. Among them, the latest would be the JO 2024 law which allows the use of algorithmic video surveillance (VSA) during the Olympic event. Then, each movement of visitors is analyzed by an algorithm to identify possible dangerous behavior.

Across the Atlantic, even if the legal aspects can be ambivalent, there are fewer barriers. That being said, the American manufacturer risks confronting its customers, who might not appreciate the feeling of being watched by their vehicle. Although, ironically, the patent does not specify for the moment that the technology would also work for the self-driven car… Do as I say, not as I do ?

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