Formula One racing technology could be used to beat traffic jams and make airports run more smoothly, Geoff McGrath, Managing Director McClaren Applied Technologies, says
Speaking at the Wired 2011 conference in London on Friday, McGrath said: "We have the technology to make predictive judgement calls for traffic and airports. We're just not using it."
McGrath was referring to the real-time decision making data gathered during a Formula One race that helps the management team obtain the best result from the driver.
On a race day, he said, every eventuality is planned for, so rather than scratching their heads and using visual observation to inform decisions, the team uses real-time data that matches planned scenarios to adjust the car, or instruct the driver.
"If the technology can be used to time a race team, it can be used for traffic," he said.
"At the moment we have traffic management staff reacting to visual information from video cameras. But we could have planned times when the hard shoulder opens to ease traffic based on data, not visual clues."
McGrath also outlined how F1 technology could improve people's holidays, by streamlining the way airport crews and plane fuel is managed.
"At the moment we have planes dumping fuel, CO2, all over us, but they don't need to. They could use real time data to time the exact approach to the runway. And have you ever had a seamless journey through an airport? If real time data can be used to time a race team, it can be used to plan the exact time it takes to get a cargo team to the plane," he said.
Supermarkets are already using real-time data to make money from you on unseasonal days. That's why chilled white wine and salad turns up almost automatically when the sun shines, says McGrath.