High Tech and Daily Life - High Tech Automobiles

Technological innovations for everyday life are not just occurring in the home. Many advanced IT technologies have made it into the car as well. As of 2004, car buyers had the option to choose certain models of sedans and minivans with proximity sensors in their bumpers. These sensors help to prevent accidents by alerting the driver if something such as a parked car or a small child is too close to the bumper. Global positioning systems (GPS) have also become an option on just about any new car. GPS systems continuously pick up signals broadcast from a network of stationary (nonorbiting) satellites positioned above the Earth. By analyzing its proximity in relation to three of the satellites in the network, the GPS system can pinpoint its location on the surface of the Earth. Most systems then combine this information with an up-to-date map of the local roads to display the car's position on a street map.

In-Vehicle Communications Systems

Combining GPS, cell phone, and sensor technology, several companies have developed what are known as in-vehicle communications systems. In the United States, OnStar was the most widely used of these in-vehicle systems, with over two million subscribers as of 2004. OnStar, which is a subsidiary of General Motors, was first offered on GM vehicles in 1996. The system is activated when the user either presses either a red or a blue button in the car or when the car's airbags are deployed. Pressing the blue button instructs the OnStar cellular unit to dial the main OnStar switchboard. A GPS then relays the vehicle's coordinates through the built-in mobile phone to the operator, telling him or her exactly where the car is. Sensors planted on the car's major systems let the operator know how the car is functioning. The car owner can then request roadside assistance, directions, or information on the status of the car. In the event of a life-threatening emergency, the red button contacts an OnStar emergency service operator who then calls the nearest emergency service provider. The system is also triggered if the air bags go off. In this event, the emergency OnStar operator is called. The operator then notifies the nearest emergency service provider, telling them where the accident took place, as well as the make and model of the car. Finally, the user can call the operator from a phone outside the car to open the car door locks or to report a stolen car. The OnStar operator can assist the police in tracking down a stolen car.

Advances in Safety and Vehicle Communications

According to "The Future of the Car: Intelligence" by Paul Horrell (Popular Science, September 2004), cars will not only likely continue to become more fuel efficient and faster, but more intelligent as well. Companies were experimenting with numerous ways of using external sensors to inform the driver and systems within the car of impending danger. French carmaker Peugeot Citroën, for instance, was experimenting with a system of infrared sensors that scan painted road markings on each side of the car and alert the driver if he or she is straying out of the lane. If the blinker is not on and the driver strays left, the sensors perceive the car crossing the line in the road and the left side of the driver's seat vibrates. If the driver strays right, the right side of the seat vibrates.

Other car companies are tinkering with systems that allow cars to communicate with one another in order to warn drivers of delays or dangerous road conditions ahead. DaimlerChrysler was experimenting with such a system in their European Smart cars. The system employs a bevy of sensors and wireless local area networks (WLAN) much like those used in wireless home computing set-ups. When this intelligent car encounters a traffic jam or black ice, for instance, sensors on the car would detect the problem. The car then would send the information via the WLAN to another car equipped with the system some 500 feet away, which would relay the information on to another car and so on until every car and driver in the area would be made aware of the traffic jam or the black ice.