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Telematics for Cars
Copyright AA1Car
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In other words, what telematics is attempting to do is to bring together a number of different technologies and combine them into one easy-to-use platform that is customizable to each individual driver. The basic idea is to have some type of in-dash unit that combines the functions of a web radio, email, ecommerce, cell phone, global positioning satellite navigation system and driver assistance program into one.
TELEMATICS: THE CONNECTED CAR
As it stands now, telematics could provide all of the following:
* Safety & Security. This includes such services as roadside assistance, emergency service, automatic accident reporting (when the air bags deploy), vehicle recovery (in case your vehicle is stolen), remote release of door locks (should you lock yourself out of your car), or a live contact should you need anything while driving.
* Navigation & Traffic Information. Using server based real-time assistance, telematics can help drivers find locations, avoid traffic congestion, accidents, construction, etc. Unlike CD navigation systems that need to be periodically updated and may only cover a limited area, downloading navigation info as directions or help is needed means the information can be current.
* Entertainment & Personal Information. Telematics can bring you the news, weather, sports, stock quotes, email (more likely voice mail to help you keep your eyes on the road), remind you of scheduled appointments or other events you have on your personal calendar, maybe even help you shuffle your schedule as you drive to work.
* Remote Service Functions. Included here would be diagnosing and reporting vehicle drivability and emission problems back to the car dealer or other service facility, monitoring the need for scheduled maintenance (oil changes, filters, etc.), and possibly even providing "live" reprogramming of engine computer functions if updates are needed.
VEHICLE COMMUNICATIONS
Virtually every vehicle today has a radio and CD or cassette player, and many luxury vehicles are equipped with navigation systems, hands-free, built-in cell phones and driver assistance "HELP" buttons like General Motor's OnStar, Ford's RESCU, Mercedes' Tele Aid, etc. But currently, most of these are separate functions controlled by separate devices. Motorola's idea is to integrate all of these into one unit, and add more features as the technology evolves.
Take radio, for example. The way it is now, you can choose any AM or FM station you want to listen to, but you can't tell the DJ what to play or to cut the chatter. You're a passive listener, and there's no way to mute out those annoying commercials that saturate the airwaves during peak drive times. With telematics, you could choose an "eradio" station that only plays the kind of music you like, or you might even be able to specify a play list of songs you want to hear (music "on demand").
Of course, you'd probably have to pay a fee to avoid having to to listen to commercials. But Motorola has yet another idea. A commercial-free eradio station could pay for itself by allowing you to purchase music with a simple voice command or push of a button. When a song is playing that you like, you simply indicate that you which to purchase it and your credit card is automatically charged for the music and an MP3 file is downloaded to your invehicle system (or if you're old-fashioned, they can mail you a CD).
The possibilities for ecommerce with this approach are almost unlimited. By combining two-way communications via a cell phone connection or satellite link, the onboard navigation system becomes a "real time" system that can provide current traffic and road construction information (and maybe provide an alternate route to avoid the worst of it) as well as navigation assistance to any address or retailer you choose to seek.
For example, let's say you're driving down the road and your stomach tells you it's time for a Big Mac. You tell your onboard telematics unit that you want the nearest McDonalds. You instantly get directions to the nearest McDonalds -- and may even be able to preview the menu or preorder your Big Mac so is it is waiting and ready when you pull up to the drive-thru lane.
Or say you're driving down the street and a local fast food restaurant wants to entice you with a special offer. When you're in range, they might flash your telematics unit with a message inviting you to stop by for a special $3.99 meal. When you pull into the establishment, their transponder recognizes your vehicle, has your meal waiting and gives you the special discount for responding to their offer.
TELEMATICS CUSTOMIZABLE TO THE DRIVER
Motorola wants people to have a pleasant driving experience when they are behind the wheel, so one thing they'd like to see incorporated into this new technology is the ability to customize the content according to your own personal preferences. One way to do that would be to go to a special website on the internet and fill out an electronic form that "profiles" your likes. For example, you might enter the kind of music you prefer (classic rock or whatever), the kind of news and other information you'd like to receive (local weather, news preferences, sports teams, stock quotes, etc.), what brand of gasoline you prefer, what kind of fast food you like and so on. The information you would then receive via your telematics unit would be tailored to your profile.
What if the same vehicle is used by different drivers (such as you, your spouse and any teenage drivers that might be in your family)? Motorola says you could enter your profile on a Palm Pilot or similar device. This could even include seat and mirror settings, climate control settings, you-name-it. When you enter the vehicle, the telematics unit would then query your Palm Pilot and download the info via an infrared link. You could even enter a destination or list of stores you want to visit, and the telematics unit could plot a course for you and provide navigation assistance to each.
One new technology that is making it possible for different electronic devices to communicate with each other is something called "Blue Tooth." This is a standard for using wireless radio waves to send data from one device to another (say from your cell phone or Palm Pilot to the onboard telematics unit). It's essentially the same technology that is used in many states for electronically collecting road tolls from motorists. You get a transponder from the state and a toll is automatically deducted from your account balance every time you drive through a toll gate. Even this technology is becoming obsolete, soon to be replaced by a satellite link transponder system that charges drivers according to actual miles driven rather than passing some arbitrary toll collection point on a road.
Motorola says the onboard transponder in a telematics system could also be used to monitor real time traffic conditions by using the vehicle itself as a "probe" or road sensor. Because the GPS navigation system is able to determine a vehicle's exact location, it could also provide real time data back to a central collection point on the vehicle's whereabouts at any point in time, and how quickly or slowly the vehicle is moving through traffic. When data from a number of vehicle is combined, it could give a very accurate indication of how traffic is moving and where congestion is causing a problem. This, in turn, would allow traffic controllers to reroute some vehicles to alternate routes and maybe alleviate some of the congestion.
TELEMATICS PRIVACY ISSUES
Privacy advocates don't like the idea of being monitored. But there are probably enough people who either don't care or could be enticed into servicing as mobile traffic monitors that would allow such a system to work.
If a live tracking system were developed, it would certainly make life a little more difficult for car thieves. But they'd probably figure out a way to disable or jam the transponder so the vehicle couldn't be tracked.
On the other hand, being able to track the whereabouts of a vehicle at all times means collection agencies could more easily repossess vehicles from people who are behind on their payments. A suspicious spouse or employer might be able to track your whereabouts when you're supposed to be making sales calls or doing deliveries. If certain safeguards are not established early on in the game, or drivers are not given the ability to disable their "connectivity," it's quite possible that Big Brother might be an unwanted passenger every time we get behind the wheel.
Conceivably, we could even be issued tickets electronically for speeding, failing to obey traffic signals, emitting too much pollution or even illegal parking via telematics. So much for the Dark Side of the new technology.
TELEMATICS SERVICE & REPAIR ISSUES
Something else telematics can do is talk to the onboard powertrain computer. If a problem occurs and a trouble code is generated, the telematics unit could report the problem back to the new car dealer -- and maybe even schedule a service appointment. It's possible the telematics unit could also tell the driver what the problem is (in simple terms) and suggest an appropriate course of action.
As it is now, when a Check Engine light comes on there's no way to know if the problem is serious or not. Is the engine running dangerously hot or did the EVAP emission control system fail a check? In one instance, ignoring the light could be very damaging while in the other it's no big deal and can be fixed later. With telematics, additional diagnostic information could be given to the driver that would help them evaluate the problem and come to a decision (keep driving, pull over to the side of the road or seek out a service facility).
If the telematics unit is interlinked with the onboard engine computer, it's also possible that certain kinds of drivability and emission problems might be fixed by downloading new settings or calibrations to the onboard computer. This would save a trip back to the dealer and would allow vehicles to be "upgraded" as the need arises on the go and even without the owner's knowledge. It would be like signing on America On Line. When they upgrade something in their software, they automatically download it to your computer and it is installed without you having to do anything yourself. The same thing could be done with your vehicle.
Motorola, Visteon and other companies are also developing systems that would allow car dealers to query your vehicle electronically via some type of wireless link to get service and repair data. Let's say the oxygen sensor on your vehicle dies. The onboard diagnostics detects the loss of signal, alerts the driver that the oxygen sensor has failed and reports the trouble code back to the dealer. If the telematics system is then used to schedule a service appointment, the dealer would already have the diagnosis in their computer, and have the part ordered, delivered and ready to install when you arrived hopefully saving time and inconvenience. At the same time, the dealer could pull up your maintenance and repair history, query your vehicle to see how miles it has been since your last oil change, etc., and be prepared to sell you a whole laundry list of services you may or may not want.
The downside to all this high tech service marketing is that the independent garages and service facilities would be hard pressed to compete with the new car dealers. Such technology obviously isn't cheap, and takes a lot of setup and management to function as intended. Who would control access to the vehicle service data and the vehicle fixes? Would the aftermarket be shut out of this high tech endeavor or would only the largest retailers and chains have the financial resources and means to partner in the technology?
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