Connected cars, alternative fuel tech to drive transport industry, say experts at Altair-Autocar Professional panel discussion

Technologies related to connected cars and alternative fuels will remain major contributors to the transportation industry in the future, said industry experts in the Altair-Autocar Professional panel discussion held in Bangalore on Monday.

The conference on  the theme of ‘The Next Gen Transportation Ideas for Emerging Markets’, moderated by Autocar Professional’s associate editor Sumantra B Barooah, touched upon various topics to find solutions to effectively meet growing needs in the transportation sector as well as discussed different parameters of safety, energy and fossil fuels.

The panel discussion saw the speakers analyse in detail the pros and cons of introducing the latest technologies in a price-sensitive and poor infrastructure-backed emerging market like India and also about the growing usage of advanced materials in the automotive industry.

Presenting his views to a discerning audience of around 100 industry representatives at Hotel Ritz Carlton in Bangalore on July 14, Dr Gopichand Katragadda, Group Chief Technology Officer, Tata Sons, said, “A market breakthrough occurs when a consumer or a business need is met through evolutionary trends in science and materials coupled with strategies for energy, digitization and manufacturing.”

He said usage of digital applications has been increasing among the next generation to plan their transport.

Among GenY, around 73 percent would like using a smartphone app to plan their transport and ride sharing may gain popularity in the future. Around 62 percent would try a ride-sharing app if it came recommended by family or friends, he said, while also touching upon the importance of rental car services. Around 55 percent of public transport users are willing to use a rental car service if it is easily available, Dr Katragadda added.

Nitin Ranade, vice-president, Product Development Processes & Virtual Systems – Auto & Farm Equipment Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra, emphasised the growing population in the country and related transportation needs. He said the population of India grows at 1.25 percent per annum while 2.5 percent of people from rural India are moving to urban areas every year. Currently 30 percent of Indians are living in the urban belt but this figure will increase to 50 percent by 2020.

Speaking about the typical car buyer profile in India, Ranade said 35 out of 1,000 Indians are expected to own cars by 2025, a scenario which will increase the pressure on infrastructure, primarily in urban regions. About 70 percent of the people in urban areas will be earning more than Rs 10 lakh per annum and they will be targeted customers for carmakers.

India has now announced safety norms to come into effect in 2017 for all new platform vehicles while crash and safety norms will be applicable by 2019 for all vehicles. Ranade said hybrid technology is one area where a lot of investments are underway and the government has of late put in a lot of effort and announced plans to promote hybrid and electric vehicles in the country to encourage an alternate fuel system in the transportation industry.

Referring to the government’s recently announced smart cities project, he said these can be a good place for the automotive industry to pilot its innovative technologies, while also stressing upon the emerging importance of connected car applications and digitalisation as it makes the travel easier. He cited his own experience in finding traffic-less ways by using digital apps.

Changing patterns of car ownership 
Presenting his view on future mobility, Chetan Maini, Bangalore-based technologist and founder of Reva Electric Car Company, “In the coming years, the demographics are going to change. People’s perspectives on mode of transport are going to change.”

Referring to the changing pattern of car ownership and ownership in the USA, Maini said it is surprising to find 50 percent of people under 30 years preferring to take to car sharing than actually buying a car.

To highlight people’s changing mindset in India on daily travel, he cited the changing travel pattern in Bangalore city. Ten years ago, a youth working in a cash-rich IT company and owning a car may not have thought of travelling by bus to work. Howver, a decade later, the same IT employee leaves his/her car at home and prefers to take a Volvo city bus to his workplace as he can avoid driving in traffic-choked streets and relax while travelling from home to the workplace.

Maini, who holds 30 global patents on electric vehicles, also highlighted the cost savings which can be had when using electric vehicles compared to conventionally fueled vehicles.

James R Scapa, chairman and CEO of Altair, said the future mobility will be driven by electrification and autonomous driving. He said the car as an “appliance” includes mechanical components along with electronics, telecommunications and software to deliver value.

He said the new mobility models will be Uber and Google Ridshare among others, adding that there will be more sensors, more antennas and more computing power to analyze and make decisions. Emerging technologies like Internet of Things and Cloud Computing will play major roles in addressing future transportation needs, Scapa added.

Manu Saale, managing director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz Research & Development India, spoke in detail about emerging safety aspects in the transportation industry. As a car company, he said Mercedes-Benz is focusing on integrated safety. The company works on integrated safety based on the three aspects of Primary, Secondary and Territory. Mercedes-Benz India launched its ‘Safe Roads’ CSR initiative in April this year in India, which has one of the worst road accidents records globally and sees around 135,000 fatalities in road accidents each year.

Saale said the company conducts research with the support of accident data, infrastructure facilities available in the country, car mechanism and driver’s awareness on road safety, active safety, passive safety and emergency actions to be carried out after accidents.

He added that the research is also addressing child safety, safety of passersby outside the car and passengers inside the car and how the latest technologies can help avoiding road mishaps. Saale said the transport industry in emerging markets like India should see how connected car applications can be used to pass alerts during accidents so as to get emergency support as soon as possible.

Tarun Mehta, CEO and co-founder of Ather Energy, said two trends – ‘Vehicle will be Electric and Vehicle will be connected’— will play a major role in the vehicle industry in the future.  Ather Energy is in the process of developing India’s first smart electric scooter and this indigenous two-wheeler aims to revolutionise the concept of two-wheeler riding in India.

Also read:  Futuristic mobility solutions rev up but ICE tech to rule till 2035