Go-ahead for additional safety on the way to school

After an extended conceptual phase, the waiting is now over: the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport has given the go-ahead for the “5-Safe” project. The research project aims to increase the safety of school children on their daily journey to school by harnessing 5G mobile technology and artificial intelligence. For this purpose, an anonymised and automated traffic control system is to be created around schools in the urban area of Landshut, which will protect children in danger zones, especially at peak times. The project has a total cost of five million euros. Landshut University of Applied Sciences, which is responsible for the main part of the technical implementation, has been given 1.6 million euros in funding. The project partners include the City of Landshut, T-Systems International GmbH and the new business start-up, Peregrine Technologies GmbH. The project is scheduled to run until the end of 2024.

Warning signals for added safety

The project has three building blocks: the 5-Safe Guardian Angel, the 5-Safe Notification Service and 5-Safe Navi. With the “guardian angel”, children receive a warning in the form of a visual or acoustic signal or vibration alert on their mobile phone or smartwatch if they are exposed to an immediate danger. With the help of the reporting service, drivers receive key information updates from intelligent road signs, such as advice to drive at walking speed if there are children by the road. And with 5-Safe Navi, they receive the relevant information directly in their navigation device.

“We are making use of the latest technological solutions and have installed numerous imaging and distance-measuring sensors, such as laser scanners, radar and cameras in danger zones to analyse the traffic volumes in real time and send warnings to all of the parties involved,” explains Prof. Dr. Holger Timinger, who is responsible for the visual object detection. “For this purpose, we are also testing a variety of different solution versions, to not only obtain a high level of security but also the corresponding acceptance for the system. We will be coordinating the different approaches closely with the three participating schools.”

These are the Staatliche Realschule Landshut, Grundschule St. Peter und Paul, and the erzbischöfliche Ursulinen-Realschule (Landshut State Secondary School, St. Peter and Paul Primary School and the Archbishop’s Ursuline Secondary School). These schools have been chosen because they comply with the 5G mobile communications standard, which transmits data faster than LTE. “The data generated cannot be assigned to any individual person, and naturally remains anonymous in full compliance with the applicable data protection regulations,” emphasises Prof. Dr. Bettina Kühbeck from the Faculty of Social Work, who is responsible for the increased protection requirement for children and the specialist data protection associated with the project.

Establishing safety technology throughout Germany

“Our long-term goal is for the 5-Safe technology not only to improve our school mobility management in the city of Landshut, but also for it to work in every school environment nationwide,” explains Prof. Dr. Abdelmajid Khelil, a member of the Faculty of Computer Science at Landshut University of Applied Sciences, and overall scientific director of 5-Safe. Therefore, an equally important part of the project is the evaluation of the usage behaviour and the acceptance on the part of the road users. “Only when everyone’s sense of safety on the roads has been strengthened by the new sensor and warning technology will parents no longer feel the need to drive their children to and from school, enabling traffic levels to fall."
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