- Ford has filed a patent with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a system that helps law enforcement identify speeders, as first reported by Motor Authority.
- The patented system not only detects when speeding occurs, but it also snaps a picture of the vehicle committing the traffic violation.
- A Ford spokesperson said that the patent is specifically designed for use on law-enforcement vehicles and does not include sharing personal driving data.
Cops could have an easier time handing out speeding tickets if a new Ford patent becomes reality. The system described in the patent application can be equipped to a Ford Police Interceptor, for example, and can identify other vehicles that exceed a set speed-limit threshold. This can trigger an onboard camera to take a picture of the lawbreaker’s car, which theoretically will help law-enforcement officers write a ticket for speeding.
Ford first filed the patent application, titled “Systems and Methods for Detecting Speeding Violations,” with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in January 2023. However, it was formally published by the USPTO on July 18, 2024, as previously reported by Motor Authority after that.
The patent application also states that once data about the speeder’s car has been captured, the photograph can be used to determine at least one distinctive feature to help identify the vehicle, such as a license plate, a paint color, or visible damage. That info can be recorded and shared with other cop cars, and it may even determine if the situation calls for a hot pursuit. The recorded information can be sent to a computer server as well as to a roadside device that uses the Internet of Things, which is essentially a network of surveillance devices that can communicate with each other.
While a cursory reading of the application might cause some people to become concerned that Ford’s patented system is planned for use in its passenger cars, a company spokesperson told Car and Driver that the tech is specifically intended for law-enforcement vehicles. Ford’s official statement is that “it’s a system that would automate a capability that law enforcement already have in use today, except this would utilize the built-in system and sensors in the vehicle. This patent does not state that driving data from customers’ vehicles would be shared with law enforcement, which is what some media have incorrectly reported.”
Ford’s spokesperson also reiterated that patents are meant to protect new ideas and not provide insight into new products coming to market. Of course, we know that there are also plenty of patents that eventually do become features on new models, so sometimes it can be worthwhile to report on features like Ford’s speed-detection system that might one day become reality.
Eric Stafford’s automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual ’97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a ’90 Honda CRX Si.
Source: Motor - aranddriver.com
