Four-wheeled tech
The automobile takes over electronics’ show
The 2015 International CES at the Las Vegas Convention Center wrapped up Friday, and the automotive sector figured predominantly in the annual gadget-fest.
Here’s a look at some of the highlights: Toyota frees up patents for fuel cell technology
Taking a page out of Tesla’s playbook, Toyota announced at the show that it will free up some 5,680 patents it holds dealing with fuel cell technology to the rest of the automotive industry. The hitherto patented information — covering fuel cell stacks, high-pressure hydrogen storage tanks and software control systems — will be made available to its competitors free of charge. Noting that promoting fuel cells will require “unconventional collaboration,” Bob Carter, senior vice-president of automotive operations for Toyota, recognizes that fuel cell-powered cars, like its recently introduced Mirai, will not be successful without a North American refuelling infrastructure. “By having more (automakers) and suppliers in on the development of fuel cells, we think this (sharing of technology) will help accelerate the adoption through the market.” Bosch a big name in autonomous driving
“Automotive connectivity marks the start of a new era — until now, cars were isolated from their surroundings, but in the future the two will interact.”
So says Wolf-Henning Schneider the member of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH with responsibility for the Automotive Group. By “networking” cars, says Schneider, Bosch can improve safety, comfort and even the efficiency of the car of tomorrow, “connectivity being about more than just being able to surf the net on the open road.” Bosch’s eHorizon system, for instance, connects the Internet to the powertrain, saving fuel (or replenishing the battery in the case of an EV) by having the on-board GPS recognize a downhill section of road coming up and switching the engine/recharging systems into their most efficient modes in anticipation. And by connecting the very same navigational aid to real-time traffic monitoring, the vehicle can coast to a (fuel-efficient) halt before it reaches the traffic jam. GM gives us a sneak peek at the 2016 Volt
According to the Consumer Electronics Association, almost onethird of U.S. households now own a vehicle that has an electronic infotainment system. And just like smartphone and HDTV buyers, new car buyers are quite willing to pay for the latest tech; as much as $1,499 US to have the latest high-tech entertainment and safety devices, according to a Harris Poll. Knowing this, it was no surprise to see General Motors steal some limelight here by giving some invited media a 30 second sneak peak of arguably its most technologically advanced vehicle car ever — the new, second-generation 2016 Chevrolet Volt plugin electric hybrid, only days before the new Volt’s “official” debut at this year’s Detroit Auto Show. Mercedes-Benz leads this year’s autonomous car push
However, one of the hottest — and most controversial — topics among the automotive CES exhibitors were autonomous — or self-diving — cars. Now, we’ve been seeing selfdriving car concepts since the first traffic jams in the early 21st-century. But modern electronics seems to be encouraging automakers to become more optimistic that some time in the near future we won’t have to actually drive our cars.
And at this year’s International CES, autonomous driving cars took centre-stage, led by the unveiling of the Mercedes-Benz F 105 Luxury in Motion, a concept car the German automaker says projects its idea of a self-driving luxury sedan for 2030.
As long as its current MercedesMaybach limousine, the F 105 seats four.
But when the concept’s computers are doing the car, the quartet of seats be rotated into a lounge-like setting to allow all four passers — including the driver — to face each other. How you can control your BMW remotely by using your smartphone
BMW’s presence at this year was so large the German automaker had to build its own compound in a parking lot across from the show’s sprawling Las Vegas Convention Centre venue. Along with offering test drives of various BMW M and icars, and a Disney-esque theatre presentation of its not-ready-for-North America laser-light technology, the German automaker was also demonstrating one of its i3 electric cars that could be parked on its own remotely via a smartphone.
While the above will no doubt make any gear head/tech geek go weak in the knees, BMW also introduced its not-as-sexy-but-more-practical “inductive charging” set. Trying to eliminate one of the inconveniences with its current range of 3 Series, X5 and i3 and i8 electric vehicles — having to plug-them in — the new system employs a magnetic field to transfer electricity between a base pad on a garage floor or your laneway. Lock and unlock your Hyundai? There’s an app for that
While self-driving cars were the sexy topic at this year’s International CES, cars are still a small part of the show.
Despite their growing presence, consumer products from global behemoths like LG, Panasonic, Sony and Samsung still make up the majority of the exhibitors.
And one of the hotter consumer segments continues to be wearable smart devices.
So it only seemed natural to see automakers jumping on this bandwagon too.
Last year at International CES, Hyundai showed off its Google Glass integration with its Blue Link connected car platform that allows drivers to start the engine remotely, stop it, flash the lights, lock and unlock the doors or find your Hyundai in a parking lot.
For 2015, the Korean automaker is now offering Android Wear integration via a smart watch app that duplicates much of the functionality already available on the existing Blue Link smartphone app.