eCall
eCall is an automated emergency assistance system integrated into motor vehicles that automatically dials the European single emergency number 112 following a serious road accident, transmitting a minimum set of data including precise location to public safety answering points for faster response.[1][2] Mandated under Regulation (EU) 2015/758, eCall requires type-approval for deployment in all new passenger cars and light commercial vehicles across the European Union and European Economic Area from 31 March 2018 onward, ensuring interoperability via public mobile communication networks and satellite navigation systems like GNSS.[2][3] The system activates through in-vehicle crash detection sensors or manual initiation by occupants, sending the minimum set of data—encompassing vehicle identification, location coordinates, direction of travel, and service requirements—without storing personal data beyond emergency needs, addressing privacy through transmission only upon activation.[4][5] Deployed to reduce emergency response times by up to 50 percent in rural areas where delays are common, eCall leverages existing 112 infrastructure to enhance road safety without requiring additional roadside units, with ongoing updates like Regulation (EU) 2024/1180 mandating 4G/5G compatibility for future-proofing.[6][7]History
Origins and Development (Pre-2010)
The concept of eCall, an automated in-vehicle emergency call system, originated in 1999 when European Commission services, led by civil servant Luc Tytgat, presented it during the launch of the Galileo satellite navigation project, envisioning integration with precise positioning for rapid accident response across Europe.[8] This early proposal emphasized leveraging public mobile networks and location data to transmit crash details to emergency services, building on existing GSM capabilities for voice and data.[9] In 2001, the idea gained further traction through a student entry in the German youth science competition Jugend forscht, where participants proposed a pan-European vehicle-based calling system that automatically dials emergency services upon detecting a collision via sensors, including transmission of vehicle location and status data.[10][11] The European Commission selected this concept amid competing technologies, recognizing its potential to standardize emergency response without reliance on proprietary telematics.[12] Development accelerated in the early 2000s through EU-funded research projects under the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). The eMerge project, initiated around 2001, focused on prototyping in-vehicle systems for automatic crash notification using GSM networks, testing interoperability for voice calls, minimum data sets on crash severity, and GPS-derived locations.[13][14] Complementing this, the GST Rescue project (2004–2007) conducted field trials in multiple European test sites, validating eCall's end-to-end functionality, including sensor-triggered activation, data transmission via unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) or SMS, and routing to public safety answering points (PSAPs).[15][14] These efforts demonstrated eCall's feasibility for reducing response times by up to 50% in rural areas, though voluntary adoption remained limited due to infrastructure gaps and privacy concerns.[16] By the mid-2000s, the eSafety initiative, launched by the European Commission in 2004, integrated eCall into broader intelligent transport systems, promoting standards through the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI).[8] Pilot deployments and simulations confirmed the system's reliance on the 112 emergency number for pan-European compatibility, with early prototypes installed in vehicles for real-world validation.[14] However, pre-2010 progress stalled on widespread implementation, as member states hesitated on PSAP upgrades, highlighting the need for regulatory mandates to achieve uniformity.[16]EU Proposal and Standardization (2010-2017)
In 2010, Directive 2010/40/EU on the framework for the deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems in the EU identified eCall as one of six priority schemes, emphasizing its potential to enhance road safety through automated emergency calls to the 112 number.[17] This directive laid the groundwork for subsequent regulatory and standardization efforts by requiring member states to facilitate cooperative systems, including emergency services integration.[17] The Harmonised eCall European Pilot (HeERO) project, funded by the European Commission and running from 2011 to 2014, coordinated pre-deployment trials across multiple member states to test interoperability and PSAP readiness for eCall signals, involving nine countries and focusing on in-vehicle system integration with public safety answering points (PSAPs).[18] A follow-up HeERO2 project from 2014 to 2016 expanded these efforts to 13 additional regions, addressing deployment barriers such as network coverage and data handling protocols.[19] Concurrently, on 8 September 2011, the Commission issued a recommendation urging support for EU-wide eCall via electronic communication networks, highlighting the need for PSAP upgrades to receive location data and voice calls.[20] On 13 June 2013, the European Commission proposed legislation to mandate eCall in all new M1 (passenger cars) and N1 (light commercial vehicles) types from 1 October 2015, aiming to reduce road fatalities by up to 10% through faster response times.[10] Negotiations between the European Parliament and Council delayed vehicle-side implementation, with agreement reached in April 2014 to push PSAP readiness to 1 October 2017 via Decision 585/2014/EU, which required member states to ensure all 112-enabled PSAPs could process eCall data.[21][22] Standardization progressed through the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), with CEN/TC 278 developing key specifications for the eCall in-vehicle system and Minimum Set of Data (MSD). ETSI focused on PSAP conformance and modem protocols, producing interoperability tests during this period.[23] In April 2015, CEN published EN 15722, defining the MSD format—including vehicle location, direction, and principal direction of impact—for transmission during eCalls.[24] EN 16062:2015 followed, outlining high-level application requirements for eCall operation over public land mobile networks. On 28 April 2015, the European Parliament endorsed the proposal, culminating in Regulation (EU) 2015/758 of 29 April 2015, which established type-approval requirements for eCall systems based on 112, ensuring compatibility with standardized MSD and network protocols.[14][25] These efforts aligned vehicle manufacturers, telecom operators, and emergency services toward interoperable deployment, though challenges like privacy concerns and retrofit costs persisted.[26]Mandate Implementation and Early Rollout (2018-2022)
The European Union's eCall mandate, established under Regulation (EU) 2015/758, took effect on 31 March 2018, requiring all new types of M1 (passenger cars) and N1 (light commercial vehicles) to incorporate a 112-based eCall system capable of automatically transmitting the Minimum Set of Data (MSD) to Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs).[1] This applied to vehicles approved for manufacture and placed on the market within the EU, with compliance verified through type-approval processes outlined in the regulation.[10] Vehicle manufacturers integrated eCall hardware, including crash sensors, GPS modules, and modems, into production lines, often leveraging existing telematics infrastructure to meet the <€100 per vehicle cost threshold estimated at the time of regulation.[1] Prior to the vehicle mandate, EU member states were required to upgrade PSAPs to handle eCall transmissions by 1 October 2017, six months in advance, under Decision 585/2014/EU, ensuring free access to mobile networks for emergency signaling.[1] By 2018, PSAP infrastructure across all EU countries supported eCall reception, including automated MSD processing for location and vehicle details, though some regions had piloted voluntary upgrades earlier.[10] Initial rollout focused on new vehicle types, with full fleet penetration gradual as older models phased out; for instance, in markets like Germany, eCall became standard in all new models from April 2018 onward.[27] Early activation rates remained low in 2018-2020 due to the limited number of equipped vehicles on roads, with comprehensive EU-wide tracking emerging later. The first aggregated data, reported for 2021, showed PSAPs receiving 421,000 eCalls, primarily automatic triggers from accidents, indicating growing operational maturity as equipped vehicles accumulated.[10] Compliance among manufacturers was near-universal, enforced via EU type-approval, though third-party service (TPS) eCall options allowed supplementary private systems without supplanting the mandatory 112-based functionality.[1] By 2022, eCall integration had expanded to support interoperability testing and minor refinements, such as enhanced data protocols, paving the way for broader adoption amid stable PSAP handling.[10] ![eCall system in a 2018 Volkswagen e-Golf][float-right]Technical Specifications
Core System Components
The eCall system architecture relies on three primary components: the in-vehicle system (IVS), public land mobile networks (PLMN), and eCall-capable public safety answering points (PSAPs). The IVS handles detection and transmission from the vehicle, PLMNs provide routing over cellular infrastructure, and PSAPs receive and process the emergency signal.[28][29] The IVS constitutes the vehicle's onboard emergency subsystem, mandated for permanent installation in new M1 passenger cars and N1 light commercial vehicles since March 31, 2018, per EU Regulation 2015/758. It integrates sensors and processors to automatically trigger upon severe crashes, detected via metrics like airbag deployment or deceleration exceeding thresholds specified in UN ECE Regulation 144. Key subcomponents include a GNSS receiver supporting Galileo, EGNOS, and other global systems for location accuracy within 10 meters, a cellular modem compliant with 2G/3G circuit-switched domains for voice and data, and a processing unit managing eCall transactions. A manual trigger button allows passenger-initiated calls, with safeguards against false activations. The IVS transmits the minimum set of data (MSD) alongside the voice call to 112 using an in-band modem protocol over the unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) or point-to-point protocol (PPP).[29][30][22] PSAPs form the backend reception infrastructure, required to be operational for eCall handling across EU member states by October 1, 2017. They must decode incoming MSD packets—formatted per CEN EN 15722, containing 140 bytes of vehicle-specific details like VIN, timestamp, location coordinates, heading, and number of passengers—and associate them with the voice channel for dispatchers. Core PSAP elements include an MSD reader interface, often software-integrated with computer-aided dispatch systems, and conformance to CEN EN 16072 for operational protocols, ensuring interoperability without altering call routing. PSAP upgrades typically involve middleware to parse the binary MSD structure transmitted in-band during the initial call setup phase.[29][31] PLMNs serve as the intermediary, leveraging existing GSM/UMTS infrastructure to route eCalls transparently to the nearest PSAP based on the caller's location, with no network modifications needed beyond standard emergency call prioritization. This ensures pan-European coverage, as IVS devices select available operators via SIM or eUICC for seamless handover.[28][32]Minimum Set of Data (MSD)
The Minimum Set of Data (MSD) forms the essential, standardized dataset automatically transmitted from a vehicle's In-Vehicle System (IVS) to a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) upon eCall activation, enabling swift emergency response without dependence on verbal details from occupants. Specified in the European standard EN 15722 by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN), the MSD prioritizes key incident parameters to minimize transmission latency and ensure compatibility across systems.[31] It is encoded using Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) for compact, reliable delivery, with provisions for XML alternatives in next-generation implementations, and constrained to a maximum of 140 bytes to suit circuit-switched or IP-based networks.[33] [34] The MSD encompasses mandatory elements capturing vehicle identity, location, and activation context, derived from onboard sensors like GNSS receivers and vehicle networks. These data facilitate precise dispatch of rescuers, accounting for factors such as crash severity indicators implicit in activation triggers. While the core set is fixed, national regulations may append elements, and optional additional data concepts allow extensions like passenger count without altering the baseline structure.[35]| MSD Element | Description |
|---|---|
| automaticActivation | Boolean indicating automatic (crash-sensor triggered) or manual initiation. |
| testCall | Boolean distinguishing test calls from genuine emergencies. |
| positionCanBeTrusted | Flag assessing GNSS position reliability (e.g., satellite signal quality). |
| vehicleType | Categorical code for vehicle category (e.g., passenger car, truck). |
| VIN | 17-character Vehicle Identification Number for unique tracing. |
| vehiclePropulsionStorageType | Code denoting fuel/electric type (e.g., gasoline, battery-electric). |
| timeStamp | UTC timestamp of MSD generation, accurate to seconds. |
| positionLatitude | GNSS-derived latitude in degrees (WGS84 datum). |
| positionLongitude | GNSS-derived longitude in degrees (WGS84 datum). |
| vehicleDirection | Heading in degrees (0-359) from last known travel direction. |
Communication and Network Protocols
The pan-European eCall system establishes communication via mobile networks to the emergency number 112, transmitting both voice and the Minimum Set of Data (MSD) to Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs). Original eCall operates primarily over circuit-switched (CS) domains of GSM and UMTS networks, leveraging Public Land Mobile Networks (PLMN) for call setup and data transfer.[38][32] The application layer protocols for these CS-based eCalls are defined in EN 16072, which specifies the sequence for initiating the call, activating vehicle sensors, and forwarding the emergency request.[39] MSD transmission in CS eCall occurs in-band over the established voice channel using a specialized modem protocol, enabling the vehicle In-Vehicle System (IVS) to send data such as precise location, vehicle direction, passenger count, and principal direction of impact without interrupting the audio path.[40] This in-band method employs frequency-shift keying (FSK) modulation as part of the eCall-specific speech codec extensions in 3GPP TS 26.269, ensuring compatibility with existing PSAP equipment while minimizing transmission latency to under 2 seconds post-call connection.[40] Network protocols prioritize the eCall as an emergency service, invoking CS fallback mechanisms if needed to maintain reliability in legacy 2G/3G environments.[41] Next-Generation eCall (NG eCall) transitions to packet-switched (PS) networks over LTE and 5G, utilizing the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) for VoLTE and enhanced data capabilities, addressing the phase-out of GSM/UMTS spectrum re-farming.[42][43] High-Level Application Protocols (HLAP) for NG eCall are outlined in CEN/TS 17184 and ETSI TS 103 683, facilitating interoperability tests and conformance for IP-based sessions.[34][44] Session initiation employs SIP for call setup and SDP for media negotiation, with MSD exchanged via structured IP packets rather than in-band modems, enabling richer data like additional sensor inputs while adhering to RFC 8147 for pan-European emergency services alignment.[45][46] Both CS and PS variants mandate end-to-end QoS prioritization, including resource reservation and handover procedures to prevent call drops during mobility.[38]| Protocol Aspect | CS eCall (GSM/UMTS) | NG eCall (LTE/5G IMS) |
|---|---|---|
| Call Domain | Circuit-switched | Packet-switched |
| Key Standards | EN 16072, TS 26.269 | CEN/TS 17184, RFC 8147, ETSI TS 103 683 |
| MSD Transmission | In-band FSK modem over voice | IP-based via SIP/SDP and HLAP |
| Network Priority | Emergency CS handling | IMS emergency registration and PS prioritization |