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Future Cars

Future Cars

Future Cars
Image from lbl.gov

Intelligent Vehicles

Fuel efficient, zero emission vehicles will use high tech electronics to assist drivers in a wide variety of ways. Vehicles will communicate with each other, with the road and with traffic signals. Autos and trucks of the future will use vision enhancement devices to help you navigate through bad weather and warn you of a possible collision with a pedestrian or animal. They will also let you know if you are getting drowsy or straying from your lane. Cars of the future will be radically different than the automobiles of today, and so will the driving experience.

Accident Free Driving

Obstacle detection, collision avoidance and intersection warning systems are being tested right now by governments and automobile manufacturers. Radio signals, sensors and cameras, future vehicles will help avoid accidents by examining the environment in real time and notifying the driver of potential problems.

Pedestrian and animal warning systems could use infrared or other detection technologies to identify large animals approaching the roadway, and alert drivers by activating flashers on warning signs. These systems may also activate in-vehicle warning devices.

Autos That Talk and Listen

While you are driving, your vehicles will communicate with the cars and trucks around you. Your future car will notify you when trucks are merging into your lane or motorcycles are in your blind spot. Smart intersections will sense vehicles from all directions and alert you of a possible collision.

Vision Enhancement

In vehicle Vision Enhancement Systems will improve visibility for night driving, inadequate lighting, fog, drifting snow, or other inclement weather driving  conditions

User Interface

Cars of the future will do a better job of keeping your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road. Voice recognition will provide a hands free way of accessing your on board computer and navigation system. But your on board computer may do more than talk back.

Haptic interfaces are human/computer interfaces. Haptics exploits human behavior, since people are more likely to pay attention to tactile cues than visual cues. With haptic interfaces, a computer could receive or convey information through touch, pressure, force or vibration. For example, sensors embedded in the exterior of a car could feel if it's veering too close to another vehicle. That message could be relayed to the driver's seat, which could alert the driver to the danger with a tap on the shoulder. 

Future Car Design Contest

Can you design a concept car? Check out the extraordinary entries in Peugeot Design Contest.

Peugeot Design Contest

Connected Cars

European researchers recently demonstrated a system that makes a car aware of the position and trajectory of other vehicles, capable of providing several seconds warning of an imminent impact. Could this be the first step into the era of the "connected car"?

Using GPS, cameras and sensors, vehicle-to-vehicle communication could help avoid accidents. For example, a vehicle in an accident could warn approaching traffic to slow down. Blind spots could be eliminated. Communicating cars could also improve traffic flow by taking the best routes or by telling you when you are driving like a tourist.

Vehicle2Vehicle Communication
Reposit
CAR 2 CAR Communication Consortium
Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communications
Crash warning for connected cars?

The Air Car

This compressed air vehicle uses a high performance compressed air engine technology developed by Formula One race car engineer Guy Negre could be an eco-friendly alternative to conventional gasoline powered vehicles and hybrids

The Air Car

The Inflatable Car

This inflatable electric car from XP Vehicles, Inc. arrives to your door in a box and assembles in less than 2 hours. The car which is due for release in 2010, will have batteries that can be swapped without turning off the engine, allowing for an extended range.

XP Vehicles

The DARPA Urban Challenge

The DARPA Urban Challenge is an autonomous vehicle program with the goal of developing technology that will keep warfighters off the battlefield and out of harm’s way.

An autonomous ground vehicle is a vehicle that navigates and drives entirely on its own with no human driver and no remote control. Through the use of various sensors and positioning systems, the vehicle determines all the characteristics of its environment required to enable it to carry out the task it has been assigned.

The Urban Challenge features autonomous ground vehicles maneuvering in a mock city environment, executing simulated military supply missions while merging into moving traffic, navigating traffic circles, negotiating busy intersections, and avoiding obstacles. 

DARPA Urban Challenge

The City Car - Stackable Cars

A concept car design from MIT, the City Car is a stackable car for two passengers.

Vehicle Stacks are located throughout the city to create an urban transportation network that takes advantage of existing infrastructure such as subway and bus lines. By placing stacks in urban spaces and key points of convergence, the vehicle allows the citizens the flexibility to combine mass transit effectively with individualized mobility.  

More City Car links

MIT's stackable concept car
Awesome animation featuring the City car
Blog discusses the City car
Boston Globe article

Hydrogen Fuel Cells

In the future, hydrogen fuel cells may power our vehicles, homes and offices more efficiently and will be less harmful to the environment than traditional energy sources. Fuel cells using pure hydrogen do not emit any air pollutants or greenhouse gases.

The Nissan Pivo2 is an environmentally friendly electric urban commuter car. 

Future Car Links

The Future of Transportation 

Automated Transportation with Laserguided Vehicles  

Driverless Car Hits the Streets of the French Riviera 

Driverless Train System Open for Business in Singapore  

CarBodyDesign.com

How to Design a 3D Concept Car

Car Design News Contest 2008 Winners

Daimler AG Concept Cars

Extreme 'green' cars of the future

ForesightVehicle.org.uk

Honda's Fuel Cell site

The ElectriCar

2007 Tokyo Motor Show Concepts

 

Future Car Gallery
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