In July 2007, the Brazilian government announced that all new vehicles would need to be fitted with an anti-theft system as standard equipment. This legislative program, known as SIMRAV, requires that each system is capable of communicating with a control centre so that tracking and remote immobil... [More]

For more than 10 years, SBD have been monitoring the theft methods used by thieves to steal vehicles across the world and how the insurance and automotive industries have responded to bring down the number of cars stolen. Electronic immobilisation has played a major part and has been the main reason behind reductions of up to 60% in the level of theft in many countries. More recently, SBD research has revealed that some thieves are not daunted by current security technology and there is an underlying level of professional theft that has not been as significantly reduced as the overall data would indicate. SBD’s Director of Vehicle Security, Jeremy Worthington explains more… [More]

Q: What is a Telematics Control Unit (TCU) and how do the designs differ? Stephen Longden: A TCU is the in-vehicle hardware that provides the platform to enable the delivery of telematics services. The TCU is typically just one element within a distributed system of sensors, antennas and network... [More]

SBD have just released new research about the future of vehicle access control and the interference problems that designers are facing now and in the future. In most markets, Radio Frequency (RF) keyfobs are the main method used to lock and unlock the car and we don’t foresee that situation ch... [More]

SBD released a three part research series on “Understanding the UK Car Insurance System” as part of its extensive support services in vehicle security and low speed crash. Chris Vargyas, one of SBD’s senior security specialists, briefly discusses the importance of the UK insurance ... [More]

David Alexander, ITS and Telematics Senior Specialist, answers questions about the market status, consumer perceptions and future outlook for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Q. ADAS is a generic term for a lot of different safety and convenience-related technologies. What are the diff... [More]

Stephen Longden, ITS and Telematics Specialist, speaks about the fundamentals of the market for telematics in China including Toyota’s launch of G-Book and the future trends in traffic information. Q: Compared with the telematics market in America and Japan, what are the key difference... [More]

Stephen Longden, SBD Telematics and ITS Specialist, describes the latest in the European Commission's eCall initiative and how vehicle manufacturers are reacting in the short-term. Q. Why is eCall back at the top of Europe’s agenda? Stephen Longden: Last month the European Co... [More]

In May 2008, Trafik försäkrings föreningen (TFF), the insurance association for Sweden, announced that it had made an agreement with Thatcham to integrate the UK New Vehicle Security Assessment (NVSA) into its insurance rating process. TFF began making public announcements of its ... [More]

Vehicle theft is a significant problem in the Brazilian market and thefts have been at a high level for a number of years. Violent thefts, such as hijackings, are commonplace in some areas of the larger cities. In response to the situation, the Brazilian government announced in July 2007 that i... [More]