Podcasts

Podcast: The Future of Traffic Flow with Eric Gannaway from Siemens ITS

February 12, 2020 • 2 MIN READ
By Ed Bernardon

There’s nothing more annoying than inching along the road in a city with heavy traffic. With today’s traffic lights, it’s not unusual to stop at a red light, travel 30 feet, then get stopped again. Rinse and repeat.

There are, however, innovations in the works to create intelligent traffic systems that collect data, analyze the patterns and make adjustments in real-time — ultimately making traffic systems more efficient than they are today. 

In this episode, we go beyond talking about just autonomous cars. Instead, we’re investigating the world of autonomous and connected cars, and the infrastructure changes that will transform the way we travel.

Eric Gannaway, from Siemens Intelligent Traffic Systems in Detroit, was my guest, one of a series technologists, researchers and policymakers who joined me to discuss new mobility topics last year for our podcast feed. (See one example in the blog I posted earlier this month about the episode with NAVYA’s Henri Coron.)

Here, Eric and I discuss the potential costs and benefits of connected vehicles, how intelligent traffic systems will improve traffic flow, and what the future of employment in the automotive industry might look like. 

Discussion Online: 

  • How Eric describes future of transportation to his grandchild. (2:37)
  • How are connected vehicles related to autonomous vehicles? (4:45)
  • What is a connected vehicle is. (5:05)
  • Benefits of collecting my data with connected vehicles? (6:23)
  • The ideal goal for connected/autonomous vehicle development. (6:50)
  • How do you see connected vehicle technology evolving into an entertainment system? (10:56)
  • How intelligent traffic systems improve the flow of traffic. (13:16)
  • How does congestion charging work with connected vehicles? (19:32)
  • What is a geofence. (20:24)
  • How does vehicle to infrastructure communication help autonomous car navigation? (20:50)
  • How do intelligent traffic systems help the multi-modal world? (24:26)
  • Where will reduction in traffic congestion come from. (25:19)
  • What will the future of employment in the automotive industry look like? (27:04)
  • What Eric sees as the most valuable feature for autonomous vehicles. (34:52)

Connect with Eric Gannaway on LinkedIn

Connect with Eddie Bernardon your Host on Linkedin

For more conversations like this, see the Future Car podcast on iTunes, Spotify or wherever you subscribe to podcasts.

If you enjoy podcasts, you might also check out NAVYA’s Henri Coron on lessons learned from a half-decade of AV deployments .

For more on automated driving and new mobility from Siemens, see solutions from Siemens Digital Industries Software and Siemens Mobility.

On the Move: A Siemens Automotive Podcast Podcast

On the Move: A Siemens Automotive Podcast

The automotive and transportation industries are in the middle of a transformation in how vehicles are designed, made, and sold. Driven by an influx of new technologies, consumer demands, environmental pressures, and a changing workforce in factories and offices, automotive companies are pushing to reinvent fundamental aspects of their businesses. This includes developing more advanced and capable vehicles, identifying new revenue sources, improving customer experiences, and changing the ways in which features and functionality are built into vehicles.

Welcome to On the Move, a podcast from Siemens Digital Industries Software that will dive into the acceleration of mobility innovation amid unprecedented change in the automotive and transportation industries. Join hosts Nand Kochhar, VP of Automotive and Transportation, and Conor Peick, Automotive and Transportation Writer, as they dive into the shifting automotive landscape with expert guests from Siemens and around the industry. Tune in to learn about modern automotive design and engineering challenges, how software and electronics have grown in use and importance, and where the industries might be heading in the future.

See more of the On the Move: A Siemens Automotive Podcast.

Listen on:

Edward Bernardon

Ed has over 25 years experience as an entrepreneur and executive in industries related to software, design, and automated manufacturing in a variety of industries including automotive, aerospace, and apparel. Primary roles have been as a sales and business development executive in early stage startups that have grown to become global in scope. Ed is currently Vice President of Strategic Automotive Initiatives at Siemens Specialized Engineering Software. In this role, he is responsible for strategic planning, business development, and making initial sales of new products to market leading companies. The primary focus of these efforts has been in the areas of design and manufacture of lightweight automotive structures and transportation interiors. Prior to Siemens, he was the third principal member and Vice President of Sales for VISTAGY that, without any outside funding, developed industry leading software for design and manufacturing of light-weight composite parts. Initially the sole sales person, he expanded sales to a global organization with direct and channel partners in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Ed was a key member of the executive team during the global expansion of VISTAGY and the transaction of Siemens acquisition in 2011. Prior to VISTAGY, Ed directed the Automation and Design Technology Group at the MIT Draper Laboratory, developing manufacturing processes, robotics, and complementary design software for composites, automotive and textile applications. Projects included design of a composite car body, FRTM and preform pick/place for composites fabrication, as well as robotic equipment for the manufacture of men’s suits, blue jeans, sweatpants and other apparel. Ed holds an M.S. in mechanical engineering from MIT, a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Purdue University, and an MBA from Butler University. He also has numerous patents in the area of high volume automated composite manufacturing systems, robotics and laser technologies.

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This article first appeared on the Siemens Digital Industries Software blog at https://blogs.sw.siemens.com/podcasts/on-the-move/podcast-the-future-of-traffic-flow-with-eric-gannaway-from-siemens-its/