Road safety is one of the main tasks that the state system has been working on for several years now. According to statistics, in May 2017, about 12,000 incidents occurred, which is undoubtedly a large number. Many of the measures taken are already in force, some still at the stage of bills. One of the latest trends in this area was the introduction of the ERA-GLONASS system. What is it and where is it used? This will be discussed in our article.
Security system "ERA-GLONASS"
An analogue that served as a working example is the eCall system introduced in Europe in 2001. Within the framework of this project, special equipment is installed on each car, which makes it possible to promptly notify the rescue services about what happened. This significantly reduced mortality due to such incidents through timely assistance.
Domestic sales received the name "ERA-GLONASS". The abbreviation stands for emergency response in case of an accident. The second part is the Global Navigation Satellite System.
Its main task, like the European counterpart, is to quickly notify specialized services of an accident or accident in automatic mode. According to domestic experts, this will slightly reduce the number of victims of road accidents.
How does ERA-GLONASS work?
The main component of the system can be considered special equipment installed on the vehicle. It has the functions of a navigator and data transfer. In the event of an accident, the system automatically assesses the severity of the accident and sends the information to a common server. It is also possible to call for help directly by the driver by pressing a special button.
With this approach, a lot of false positives are formed, which in practice have to be eliminated. A single center has been organized for this, capable of processing incoming information and only then send general data to the competent services. This will reduce the burden on 112 employees and more effectively provide assistance to those who need it.
Implementation History
The first steps towards the implementation of the program were made in 2009. Then the development began. Then the project was transferred under the control of the GLONASS partnership. A trial introduction was carried out at the beginning of 2013 in several regions of the country. Then the coverage increased, and 63 subjects entered the testing. And by the end of 2013, full-fledged service was already implemented in all regions.
According to the rules for equipping cars, from January 1, 2015, all the technical equipment that passes its first compliance with the regulation should have received the equipment. Then, from January 1, 2016, all vehicles that transport people and goods must be equipped. And from the beginning of 2017, all vehicles are already.
The first production cars equipped with the ERA-GLONASS system from the factory was Lada Vesta. Its owners, probably, already noticed a special SOS button on the top control panel.
The implementation regulations are governed by the federal law “On the State Information System“ ERA-GLONASS ”” dated December 28, 2013.
Equipment
The first thing to mention when talking about devices is the navigation module. It is he who receives signals from GLONASS satellites and in case of trouble sends coordinates along with a request for help. The communication module uses data transmission via GSM or UMTS technologies. Naturally, there must be an identification device in the bundle - an integrated SIM-chip. The modem and antenna are responsible for direct data transmission.
A separate module is also responsible for analyzing the state of the car, i.e., calculating the fact of an accident. For the operation of the entire system, operational and read-only memory is used. And in order for the ERA-GLONASS equipment to function without interruptions, there is a backup power source.
Physically, the complex is a set of various modules and boxes connected to each other. A separate button with indicators for a manual emergency call is displayed on the control panel.
Depending on the configuration of the vehicle, the list of equipment may be slightly modified.
A number of both domestic and foreign manufacturers are developing devices and modules.
Step-by-step system review in the event of an accident
In the event of an accident, the ERA-GLONASS security system immediately begins collecting data on what happened. Location information, VIN code, detailed technical information about the accident and time are read. Including the study package includes the type of fuel and color of the car.
For this, all sensors and measuring mechanisms are used. Then, through communication devices, this data is transmitted to the central server "ERA-GLONASS". Here is the processing of information, the establishment of the fact of urgency and relevance of an accident.
The company claims that from the ERA-GLONASS terminal to the database, data passes in 20 seconds. If the vehicle has additional communication channels, it is also possible to transmit information on them. For example, through SMS.
After the fact of an accident on the basis of "ERA-GLONASS" is established, the received data are processed and, depending on the severity, the necessary services are notified - the Ministry of Emergencies, ambulance and traffic police.
Hardware Installation Procedure
After the vehicle has entered the territory of the Russian Federation, it must be subjected to the installation of the ERA-GLONASS system. To serve the public, there are accredited centers that perform this procedure and equipment testing. It is worth noting that the mandatory installation of "ERA-GLONASS" applies only to arriving cars and vehicles released from the factory. But each car owner can, on his own initiative, become the owner of this system. True, there is one small difference - only a simplified version can be installed in used cars. This means that in the event of an accident it is necessary to report it manually, using a special button.
The installation procedure for the ERA-GLONASS system does not take much time. Specialists will mount the equipment, test it and register it in the database.
The current stage of the project
According to the law, "ERA-GLONASS" must be on all imported and undergoing technical compliance vehicles. Because of this, a small collapse arose in the Far East. The fact is that the number of incoming vehicles is growing, but manufacturers do not have time to create the necessary equipment. Thus, in the Russian Federation there is a car, but you can’t move on it, since it does not comply with the technical regulations.
This has already managed to cash in on individual representatives of the reselling organizations. They purchase equipment and install it on cars, which are then sold at inflated prices.
In general, until the ERA-GLONASS device market is saturated and begins to satisfy the needs of car owners, the installation procedure will remain only a headache.
How much is?
According to the company, the cost of ERA-GLONASS will be in the range from 18 to 25 thousand rubles. But in practice, due to a shortage of necessary equipment in some regions, the price can jump up to 80 thousand rubles. Also, much depends on the manufacturers and the total cost of modules and devices.
User reviews
ERA-GLONASS is a new attempt by the authorities to bring perfection to the current road safety situation. However, the implementation is still lame. The lack of equipment greatly affected the promotion of the ERA-GLONASS system. What did this entail? Firstly, the appearance of speculative schemes in which vehicles began to be sold at times more expensive. Secondly, the small run-in and testing of the system led to the fact that not all the nuances and technical details were taken into account. Car owners note that the emergency call button is not always working properly. But in practice, this means that some of the victims may be left without the help they were supposed to.
The quality of the equipment also does not always correspond to reality, and in some situations there are malfunctions when the location data are transmitted incorrectly, information about the severity of damage is not read, or the indicated time does not corny.
Many car owners mistakenly believe that the system constantly monitors their movement. Therefore, the question periodically arises: "How to disable ERA-GLONASS?". This is not necessary, since it is still aimed at obtaining operational assistance in various emergency situations on the road.
In addition, the device specification provided by the developer company makes it clear that the operation occurs only during an accident or when the ERA-GLONASS button is pressed. What is this about? The system begins to read data only when the characteristics of the vehicle change. For example, a sharp decrease in speed. Additional sensors give a complete picture of what is ultimately sent to the base for subsequent analysis.
On the official GLONASS website you can find interesting statistics. So, the system has already registered more than half a million vehicles. They received a little more than 200 thousand calls. At the same time, only 1300 of them were recognized as valid, that is, in real need of help. This is the very data processing when emergency services are not distracted by false positives and provide support to those who really need it.
conclusions
Any innovation in Russia is a stretch and a creak. Especially if neither the people nor the organizers are properly trained. As a result, there are overlays on all fronts of the project. The same thing happened with ERA-GLONASS. What could it be if product testing was conducted on a larger scale? Or would manufacturers begin to manufacture devices long before the signing of the decree on mandatory equipment with the system? There would be no queues for the registration of imported cars, inflated prices and speculation on this. In addition, it was possible to draw experience from the European analogue of the system in order to anticipate errors and implement the project.
Conclusion
Against the background of what was happening, protest movements, pickets and rallies arose. Many believe that this introduction is just a new type of tax.
But, as GLONASS promises, the deficit problem will be resolved in a short time. And work on improving the equipment is ongoing. Therefore, car owners can only hope that soon the implementation procedure will become more accessible and simple.