Ford Test Driving Blockchain for Energy-Efficient Vehicles

Ford is giving a little more road to a blockchain pilot program aimed at improving fuel efficiency.

On Tuesday, the auto-giant said it will use blockchain to monitor and automatically implement fuel efficient driving modes for a fleet of vehicles in Cologne, Germany. This is part of a wider pilot program also happening in London and Valencia, Spain.

In collaboration with the City of Cologne, Ford outfitted 10 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles with cellular modems that enable geofencing. As the vehicles enter low-emission zones, they will automatically switch to electric-drive.

The metadata, such as when the vehicle enters or exits a zone as well as the miles driven, will be recorded to a blockchain.

The pilot addresses the issues municipal authorities face in administering and implementing low-emissions zones by transmitting data to officials in real-time.

“Security, trust and transparency of emissions data are of paramount importance to all stakeholders in this project, and are key for our vision of cleaner air in the city,” said Gunnar Herrmann, chairman of the management board, Ford-Werke GmbH.

The pilot is part of SmartCity Cologne, a collaborative program to promote climate protection and energy transition.

On Monday, CoinDesk reported that 5 major automakers including BMW, Honda and Ford are working with the Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative (MOBI) to implement automatic payments for tolls, parking meters and similar vehicular payments.

Ford photo By Philip Lange/Shutterstock