A new QUT research project could help predict the severity of trauma and injuries sustained in car crashes – leading to a better understanding of how to improve road safety in Australia.
The study is a partnership between Intelematics, iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre, and led by QUT School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Centre for Accident Research & Road Safety.
Researchers will use real-world vehicle sensor data captured during road crashes. This will be analysed alongside trauma-related health outcomes. The goal is to predict crash injury severity, also providing critical insights for first responders.
The study will assess Australian crash data and data generated by vehicle telemetry fitted with and without eCall, between 2018 to 2024. Used by multiple vehicle manufacturers, eCall is an in-vehicle system that automatically contacts emergency services in the event of a serious crash. The study will also evaluate the life-saving potential of eCall technology.
Rob Finney, (pictured right), General Manager at Intelematics, said: "The value of this data to cut emergency response times and reduce road trauma is not fully understood in an Australian context and we believe uncovering this could be transformative for road safety in Australia."
Dr Shamsunnahar (Shams) Yasmin, (pictured above) senior lecturer in transport engineering at QUT, who will lead the project, said: "This isn't just about crash data—it's about delivering actionable information to those first on the crash scene".
"By predicting how severe the injuries might be using car crash data and showing how much time could be saved if emergency services had this information upfront, we have the potential to improve emergency response and save lives."
Beyond evaluating outcomes, the project will also make key recommendations to automotive manufacturers on the most valuable crash-related datasets that should be shared with emergency services.
These recommendations will be grounded in data and focused on improving road user safety and emergency response protocols.
Rob Finney said: "By connecting the dots between what vehicles 'know' at the time of a crash and what emergency responders need to know, we're aiming to build a data bridge that could significantly enhance post-crash outcomes.
"This research will open the door to widespread collaboration between vehicle manufacturers, government agencies and emergency services working collaboratively to harness eCall and vehicle data – ultimately saving lives."
This first-of-its-kind study in Australia, a fourteen-month project, is expected to provide an evidence base that informs policy development and industry practices around vehicle connectivity, crash data, and emergency service collaboration.
Ian Christensen, Managing Director, iMOVE Australia, said: "Road vehicles collect vast amounts of data which is ripe for use to improve safety and crash outcomes on our roads. However, working out what data to use and how to use and share it requires deeper understanding. iMOVE is pleased to support this project as a meaningful step forward in how we can use data to improve road trauma outcomes, and also as an enabler of future safety-focused collaborations."
Rod Chester
QUT Media
