While robots cars equipped with high-tech sensors and software are hitting the roads, other advancements in transportation are cropping up as well — in the form of traffic and parking signs.

The Australian Road and Maritime Services (RMS) has put up the world's first solar-powered e-ink traffic signs in Sydney.

Utilizing the same electronic ink technology that is used by your e-book readers and smartwatches, the signs are easy to read in the sun and are illuminated for reading clearly at night. Developed by the company Visionect, the electronic ink signs allow messages to be updated remotely in order to provide reliable road and parking information. The messages are sent to the wireless signs via cellar network. That means the signs can adjust to reflect changes in traffic, reveal alternate routes during construction or parking information during big events.

The e-ink signs are solar-powered, making them self-sustainable and energy-efficient. The wireless signs won't malfunction in the sun's heat, and will still function in case of a power outage.

"The hardware components are managed by server software programmed to 'wake up' the sign for certain pre-scheduled windows of time when the content on the sign will be changed using 3G technology. Outside of the 'waking' time, the traffic signs use no power," said Visionect's head of product development, Rok Zalar.

The customizable signs could help cut costs associated with putting up temporary traffic and parking signage. According to Visionect, the city of Los Angeles puts up 558,000 temporary parking restrictions signs every year, to the tune of $9.5 million.

Fifteen signs were tested on the streets of Sydney, with a second rollout complete in the Moore Park area.

Via: Engadget