4 Essential Ways Video Will Influence the Future of the Connected Car
The market reach of the connected car is expanding rapidly and research company Gartner predicts in just a couple of years from now, there will be up to 61 million automobiles equipped with data connectivity in production.
As cars become more automated, the driving experience will change as well, making room for innovations and solutions meant to:
- significantly reduce the chance of accidents
- save time while in transit
- increase fuel efficiency
- make spending time in traffic more enjoyable and more productive.
Video will play a major role in shaping the future of the next generation of connected cars. If you want to learn more about this topic, keep on reading.
1. Video Will Make Driving a Connected Car even Safer
Human error is to blame for more than 90% of all road accidents, so it’s no surprise car automation is seen by many as the solution to drastically reduce the number of injuries and fatalities caused by car accidents.
Video could help connected cars deliver on their promise to save lives and make the roads safer.
There still might be a while until fully-autonomous cars which can flawlessly operate without a human driver become a familiar sight across the world. But video can make driving safer now. Here’s how:
- By allowing drivers to see what is behind their vehicles. This will not only help drivers back up in a safer manner, but also assist them with taking better decisions when it comes to whether to switch lanes and when the best time to do it is.
- By offering drivers an all-around view of their surroundings. Car-mounted cameras will collect real-time images of what’s in front, behind and to the side of the vehicle to fuse a 360-degree view. This multi-camera system is already being used by tech giants like BOSH to offer drivers a safer and more convenient way to park and maneuver their cars even in limited-visibility conditions.
2. Provide Enhanced Security Against Vandals and Burglars
The majority of car break-ins, theft and acts of vandalism occur when the driver of the car is not present and the vehicle is parked.
Just like home security cameras are being used to enhance the security of your home, car video security cameras hidden in strategic parts of the connected car can make a vehicle more secure.
Companies like LyfeLens are already offering drivers the technology needed to receive real-time alertson their smartphones about the potentially-criminal activity.
Also, thanks to sound, motion and impact sensors working together, owners can watch live feeds of what’s going on around their car while they are away.
Future video technologies are likely to also employ biometric scanning to add facial recognition systems to connected cars and thus alert the owner of the car when an unauthorized person attempts to start the engine.
3. In-car Entertainment Capabilities Will Reach New Heights
The idea of employing video to provide in-car entertainment has been around for a while now. We already have headrest-mounted monitors and the opportunity to watch in-car live streaming.
But the connected car of tomorrow is likely to evolve past these and offer even more in terms of entertainment for passengers. Here are a few of the benefits it’s set up to bring:
- Uninterrupted video streaming. Your future car might be able to avoid areas with low or non-existent wireless connectivity signal and thus provide steady reception.
- Virtual Reality (VR) entertainment for passengers. What if you could watch 3D versions of your favorite characters or gaze into other worlds, while you’re stuck in traffic? Honda has already started working on creating the technology needed to support a VR video experience by partnering with DreamWorks Animation. You can get a sense of how this might look like by watching this video.
4. Video Will Support Augmented Reality Systems