Written on June 11, 2008 – 8:22 am | by Bogdan Alex |
We’ve all seen many different approaches describing how cars could look in the future. Aerodynamics, aggressive designs, cool light-weight materials, all sorts of intelligent on board stuff that practically make cars drive themselves. But automotive builders don’t mention too many things about the actual interaction between the driver/passengers and the car. It’s always about how the car looks and its performance. How about some interesting system that would make people enjoy interacting with their car?

Recently, we’ve been kindly informed by Megan Malley from Ketchum that IBM is developing a system which will let cars recognize your facial expressions and gestures. This way you can actually communicate with your car. For example you can use the steering wheel as a special communication console on which you tap, rub or push buttons and have your car respond by opening the window or power the music player. Check out this demo clip:



Apart from identifying gestures in order to activate things, your car can also be equipped with cameras that follow your lips and listen to your commands. You’ll even be able to mix around on your favorite songs by simply tapping the steering wheel to make a drum-like, hi-hat or any other special effect sound. These things are not limited to the driver; they can be performed by passengers, as well.

When IBM completes this project, most car manufacturers will surely include the touch sensitive steering wheel which can be programmed to follow numerous commands and control all aspects of your automotive experience.