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Carmaker Ford has said it is experimenting with technology to detect potholes and warn drivers of their locations.
Cars equipped with cameras could constantly scan roads during journeys, with resulting data on potholes displayed on other drivers' dashboards.
The idea is being tested at the firm's research centre in Aachen, Germany.
One expert said altering routes to avoid potholes might not always be possible.
"A virtual pothole map could highlight a new pothole the minute it appears and almost immediately warn other drivers that there is a hazard ahead," said Uwe Hoffmann, a research engineer at Ford.
"Our cars already feature sensors that detect potholes and now we are looking at taking this to the next level."
Waze already does that with a helpful, "Watch out, pothole ahead!"
(Score: 2) by lentilla on Saturday February 18 2017, @06:20PM
I have a "pothole" directly in front of my place. Well, not exactly a pothole - it's a water hydrant covered with a lid. The road got resurfaced, and instead of the lid sitting flush with the road surface, the lid now sits about two centimetres below the surface, in a lightly-dished well approximately twenty centimetres diameter.
The lid sits about a metre from the kerb, and about two metres from the centre marking. So drivers have three options: avoid the pothole by driving "over" it (putting one wheel either side), avoid the pothole by driving "around" it (putting both wheels between the pothole and the centre)... or simply drive into it. I estimate that between 30% and 40% of cars drive into it.
(Unfortunately, it's rather easy to tell when someone drives into it, because one hears a distinct thud-thud as someone pilots their vehicle into the pothole. You can almost set your watch by the mowing contractor that; every day at 4pm; drives into it with a thud-thud-crash as the contents of his trailer bounces around. Every day - you'd think the fool would learn to avoid it.)
The bizarre thing about this "pothole" is that at least 90% of the traffic on this road will drive this route at least daily. Driving into the pothole transmits an uncomfortable bump into the cabin - so it's not like one doesn't know that you've just driven into it. It's not exactly hiding. It's been there for over a year now. It's easy enough to avoid. And yet... they still drive into it on a regular basis!
The moral of the story is: you can tell motorists that there is a pothole ahead until you are blue in the face, and a large proportion will still drive straight into it.
(Score: 0, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 18 2017, @09:18PM
Cut up a rubber mat and place it on top of the lid. Use multiple layers if necessary and glue them together.
Be a non-jew and fix things.
(Score: 2) by lentilla on Sunday February 19 2017, @10:26AM
Cut up a rubber mat and place it on top of the lid.
That is a clever solution. I doubt it will work but it's better than anything I've come up with so far. As I see it there are two problems: Firstly - getting the mats to stay put. I doubt adhesive will last long and putting fasteners in the road goes a bit beyond casual Do-It-Yourself. Secondly - it's an actual hydrant, used in emergency situations. I really do not want to be responsible (or liable, for that matter) in the situation where emergency services are unable to connect.
Be a non-jew and fix things.
I find that offensive. If you find yourself unable to be civil it would be best to consider staying silent.
(Score: 2) by McGruber on Sunday February 19 2017, @04:33PM
I have a "pothole" directly in front of my place. Well, not exactly a pothole - it's a water hydrant covered with a lid. The road got resurfaced, and instead of the lid sitting flush with the road surface, the lid now sits about two centimetres below the surface, in a lightly-dished well approximately twenty centimetres diameter.
Call up whoever owns the road (probably your town or city) and complain that they forgot to put in the "manhole riser" when they repaved the road.
A "Manhole riser" is a large ring, the diameter of the manhole opening, that goes under the cover. It raises the cover to be flush with the repaved road. Most are metal, but there is at least one company making them out of recycled rubber.