When it comes to car innovations these are exciting times. Cars are clearly heading in the direction of a lot more autonomy, which is exciting for some and disturbing for others – it’s really a matter of perspective.
Personally, I would never want to give up the feel of being in control of the car myself, but it’s definitely a nice idea to know that the car is there to back you up in order to make things a lot safer on the road.
The best car innovations that we can look forward to in the next five years are primarily meant to augment our control of the car rather than take it away – which is something we can look forward to with anticipation. Here are the top five new car innovations that will change the way we drive forever.
Kinetic Energy
The Formula One car circuit has always been a source of great car innovations and these innovations continue to this day. The major racing teams of Formula One are currently being encouraged to find new ways to convert energy and reduce fuel mileage.
One of the ways that they’re doing this is through the use of the kinetic energy created during braking activities. Essentially when you apply the brakes it creates energy through friction which is then converted for use in the cars of various mechanical components reducing the need for fossil fuels.
This may be experimental right now, but you can expect to see this innovation widely adopted and in use in everyday street cars in the near future.
V2V Communication
Another great technology that is nearing the point of mass introduction by the major car manufacturers is the use of vehicle to vehicle communication.
This is technology that allows one car on the road to talk to another – essentially what this means is that each vehicle can exchange information such as their current speed and position on the road to help avoid accidents by allowing the vehicles to act autonomously and make split second decisions.
Pre-Collision Technology
One technology that is already in use on some of the more advanced vehicles on the road today is the use of pre-collision technology.
This type of technology allows the computers inside the car to view the road ahead of you and alert you to any hazards that are approaching such as pedestrians, or other vehicles. While the car may not react for you, it gives advance warning which allows you to react in time and avoid a serious incident.
Biometrics
We are all familiar with the idea of keyless entry for cars, but this usually requires a remote control of some sort. In the future, you can expect these to be replaced with the ability to enter your car, and even start your car, via biometrics.
This will include things such as thumbprints or even retina scans – which will make it much more difficult for thieves to steal cars. As a byproduct of this, you can also expect the reduction of incidences of car chases on major highways resulting in innocent bystanders being involved in accidents.
HUD’s (heads up displays)
HUD’s or heads-up displays are not new – they’ve been around in cars in some form or other for the last 20 years or so, but the technology has never worked very well.
With the rapid growth of technology in the last few years including things such as Smart Glass you can expect heads up displays to become a major part of all vehicles in the near future. These technologies will allow for easy navigation in real time without the need to consult with your smart phones or GPS devices that can distract you by taking your eyes away from the road.
There’s no doubt that car technology is heading in some exciting directions. The next five years will undoubtedly produce some of the most innovative and advanced technological changes to cars ever imagined.
While those of us that love driving will never be excited about the prospect of giving up control of our cars, it is exciting to know that these new safe technologies are just on the horizon.
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