Making the automated car a digital integrated space

On May 2-4 2016, in Berlin, at a key global event for discussion of digital society, Bosch introduced a new futuristic show car.

The show car represents a vision of the interiors of a car in the future, what it would be capable of doing and soon, how the car and driver would be able to communicate with each other. The German components and services company aims to create the space of a car, a digital integrated space where your car doubles up as a personal assistant. An integrated personal assistant, usually voice activated, is simply a software agent that can perform tasks or services for an individual like setting alarms, taking notes, setting reminders of events and many other tasks.

What is the idea?

Bosch CEO Dr Volkmar Denner believes that the “car of the future will be a new digital living environment.”. With the development in the automated car section, Bosch intends to let the driver use the time spent in the car while it drives itself, for more useful tasks. The company has installed large flexible surface monitors that adapt to any situation, replacing the usual front and middle consoles.

The idea is to enhance the fuel efficiency of the vehicle, improve traffic conditions on the roads and ensure the safety of the driver by connecting the car with the home and the internet giving real-time weather and traffic updates both from the cloud and in social media and communication applications. This will also lead to saving a lot of time on the journey as well as the driver’s personal time.

How it works

The car offers a wide variety of features for the driver, like access to social media, 24/7 connectivity to the internet so the driver can use it to check e-mails, photos, important documents or just browse around. But to ensure the driver doesn’t endanger others on the road, these features can only be used during automated driving.

The car informs the driver when automated driving is possible and if the driver wishes to let the car have control, he simply needs to place his thumbs on contact points on the left and the right side for 3 seconds. To regain control, all he/she has to do is simply repeat the procedure.

Added features

The car has an all-round interior lighting which completes its display concept with a futuristic look. The colour can be selected by the driver, but the light has other uses as well. It can warn the driver of potential hazards like in the case of a pedestrian crossing the road in front of the vehicle, the interior light will blink rapidly on the left or the right side as necessary to direct the driver’s attention toward it. This ambient light function is another one of the vehicle’s extensive range of safety features, which also include lane-keeping support, emergency brake and traffic jam assists.  The car can be started by  fingerprint identification.

Bosch has also introduced a ‘Haptic feedback touchscreen’, which creates a sensation that an actual button is being pressed on a touchscreen. This prevents accidental pressing of any other button which is a very common problem while using a typical touchscreen. This is achieved using vibrations for feedback to give the user a sensation of the buttons being pressed.

The car allows you to communicate with family and do video chats or conferences while it is in the automated driving mode. “Alongside the home and the office, the car will become the third living space and a personal assistant,” said Denner.

Connectivity and Safety

Other than browsing the internet for social media the car the car can connect to a number of other domains like the driver’s home with an integrated security system. If a visitor rings the doorbell, the car switches on the intercom. A fingerprint sensor in the car allows the driver to open the front door remotely. This way a Package delivery staffer can leave off his package at a sealed-off foyer or if a friend or relative has come over and they don’t have keys, you can remotely open the door for them from wherever you are.

Once the vehicle arrives at home, it reconnects with the home security system which when sends a live footage from the home’s cameras before getting on the property. It is also possible to check the vehicle’s direct surroundings using the on-board cameras.  This prevents trespassers hiding behind the car from gaining access to the property. These features are especially attractive in countries where security is a premium. Once the car enters the garage and the passengers have exited the vehicle, the car parks itself, ready for the next drive.