Swedish infrastructure giant Ericsson has announced a new partnership with Eindhoven University of Technology, which is focussed on advancing the intelligent capabilities of automotive vehicles, starting with a solar-powered connected car.

The car, which will compete in a 3,000km race from Darwin to Adelaide in Australia as part of Solar Team Eindhoven, will be fully solar-powered, and Ericsson will be looking to drive intelligence in the vehicle based on the Connected Traffic Cloud platform it announced at Mobile World Congress in March.

Connected Traffic Cloud is a managed service capable of sharing two-way data between connected cars and road traffic authorities. In the context of the World Solar Challenge, Ericsson will be looking to aggregate car, traffic and weather data, conduct in-depth analytics and maximise the energy and power consumption efficiency of the vehicle.

Announced at Mobile World Congress earlier this year, Ericsson reckons connected cars and road authorities utilising the platform will benefit from enhanced road safety, improved traffic flow and vehicle performance.

Speaking on the launch of the platform, Orvar Hurtig, head of industry and society at Ericsson, reckons real-time data analysis is the key to driving more intelligent road networks.

“Mobile connectivity is increasingly a must-have feature in cars, thanks to both consumer demand for infotainment and a wide range of regulatory initiatives that aim to increase road safety,” he said. “As a result, vehicles are becoming a major source of data that could be used to improve road traffic authorities’ ability to manage traffic and prevent avoidable accidents. Connected Traffic Cloud is the means by which that data could be shared.”

Visit Connected Cars 2015 at the RAI Amsterdam between the 24th & 25th June. Automakers are eligible for free passes.