BMW and Mini cars in 44 countries provide crowd data to Otonomo

Otonomo today announced that it is expanding the capabilities of its automotive data services platform to increase the utilization of crowd data, which is now available from connected BMW and Mini vehicles located in more than 44 countries, along with data from other automotive manufacturers.

The Otonomo Automotive Data Services Platform increases the value of this data by reshaping it and enriching it so application and service providers can more quickly utilize it in their applications.

In addition to supporting personal services for BMW and MINI connected vehicles across the globe, Otonomo will also make crowd data available for innovative new use cases that reduce city congestion:

• Parking: Aggregated ultrasonic sensor data from BMW vehicles can be used to identify open parking spots and estimate parking availability. Services that use this data can dramatically decrease urban congestion. 
• Urban planning for smart cities: The content and location of road signs detected by forward cameras from BMW Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) enrich the understanding of traffic flows through urban environments and highways.
• Real-time intelligence: Real-time traffic information and navigation services and apps can use BMW data to highlight areas of congestion and help drivers find the fastest routes.
• Local hazard warning services: BMW local hazard data provides a way to alert drivers of dangerous road conditions—including heavy rain or dense fog—through mapping and navigation services. In addition, information on dynamic signage can issue warnings on slowdowns, slippery roads, or ice.
• Mapping services: Road sign and ultra-sonic sensor (USS) data keep critical road information updated. This includes speed limits shown on road signs and temporary road and speed changes caused by construction work.
• Municipal maintenance and road optimization: Analytics can use BMW road sign data to identify signs that are missing or damaged and even trigger repair orders.

“Otonomo has long focused on building an ecosystem around car data that is open to many parties and inclusive for many use cases,” said Ben Volkow, Chief Executive Office and Founder of Otonomo. “We’re excited to be able to expand this ecosystem with crowd data from BMW and MINI vehicles.”

Last year, the BMW Group, Daimler, Ford, Volvo, HERE Technologies, TomTom and state governments launched the first pilot of a neutral server to exchange and combine data In collaboration with the EU Data Task Force set up by the European Commission. This innovative road safety improvement initiative collects real-time and other safety-relevant data generated by vehicle sensors, which can be provided through a standardised interface, based on the principle of reciprocity: Those who share safety-relevant data in return receive services to improve road safety.

The data related to this prior announcement is only used for the consortium mentioned. The data provided under this new announcement is intended to to be shared with Otonomo's larger ecosystem of other OEMs and automotive service providers.

Picture copyright: BMW, 2020