Ford Robots

Over the last few decades, the world's space programs have yielded a number of science and technological discoveries that have led to advances in everything from telecommunications systems to scratch-resistant glasses. In keeping with this tradition of harnessing the innovations of space for terrestrial use, one major U.S. automaker has announced plans to embark on a major research study of robots used in space missions in order develop advanced vehicle-to-vehicle communications on our roadways.

For the next three years, Ford will work with St. Petersburg Polytechnic University in Russia to analyze how robots on the International Space Station communicate with Earth to create what the car company calls"future applications of the connected car communications protocol."

Specifically, the research effort will focus on telematics, the long-distance transmission of digital information. The robots used in the study will include the JUSTIN Humanoid, the EUROBOT Ground Prototype, and NASA's Robonaut R2.

"We are analyzing the data to research which networks are the most robust and reliable for certain types of messages, as well as fallback options if networks were to fail in a particular scenario," Ford technical leader Oleg Gusikhin said in a statement. "In a crash, for example, a vehicle could have the option to communicate an emergency through a DSRC, LTE or a mesh network based on the type of signal, speed and robustness required to reach emergency responders as quickly as possible."

Eventually, the team also hopes to use the research to improve the overall reliability of vehicle-to-cloud as well as vehicle-to-infrastructure systems. The idea of a connected vehicle network is part of Ford's long-term vision outlined its "Blueprint for Mobility," a plan that calls for a network connecting cars, bikes, and commercial vehicles by the year 2025.