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CES used to exist most electronics and gadgets, separate from even computers. Over the by 15 years or then it has absorbed other consumer technology, and so much so that the Consumer Electronics Association has changed its name officially to the Consumer Engineering Association – only the bear witness is even so CES. In that transition, automotive technology has likewise go a key part of the evidence. That shouldn't be surprising, every bit cars pack more computing power and electronics than whatsoever other consumer product, and are the nigh complex of all consumer products to design and manufacture.

While cars are certainly not only smartphones on wheels – they're much more – the smartphone experience is fundamentally irresolute the expectations consumers accept most how they collaborate with their cars and their connection to the globe around them. Auto manufacturers and suppliers know that, and they still desire control over the driving experience, be it normal, semi autonomous, or fully autonomous.

Man Machine Interface (HMI)

HMI, as designers and others call information technology, was one of the ascendant parts of the automobile displays on the show. Every manufacturer at the testify showed current infotainment and control systems plus futuristic ones. On the infotainment side, the recently launched Android Car and Apple CarPlay were present, but automakers want to offer a more customized experience.

Ford showed the previously announced Sync 3, only part of its importance is the new AppLink platform. In conjunction with partners QNX (underlying OS for Sync 3), infotainment software programmer UIEvolution, and Toyota, the new AppLink platform is at present open source (called Smart Device Link, or SDL) and aims to be the third platform – with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto – for tying smartphone capabilities and applications into the car environment. With Toyota and Ford behind it, it brings the high book of 2 total-line automakers to entice developers to adapt their apps to the platform. Ford likewise showed a couple of examples to necktie the motorcar into home automation applications, one with voice control of Wink applications from Sync3 and another with an interface to Amazon's Alexa to control lights and garage doors in the dwelling.

CES 2016 AR

I pervasive theme in HMI was the trend to deliver increasingly personalized experiences. While cars accept long offered levels of personalization for seat and steering, radio presets, mirrors and other aspects depending on the model, and usually tied to a fundamental pull a fast one on and sometimes Bluetooth telephone connections, the trend is to tie this to the smartphone and deliver much more. Ford's in-firm Livio software unit is working on means to determine, via sensors within the machine and users smartphones, where people are sitting in the auto, offer them personalization and control over HVAC and infotainment systems from only in their zones – rear, front, etc.

Kia's i-Cockpit concept featured keying off of a smartwatch to adjust a multifariousness of aspects of environment and infotainment features to the user's preferences. Naturally, besides the vehicle features the user's favorite in vehicle apps would automatically load into the system and be set to go. Another characteristic was a tie-in to enable fuel (or electric charging payment) past scanning a fingerprint sensor in the car.

BMW showed off other aspects of personalization and its potential practicality. BMW Connected and the Open Mobility Cloud ties into the user's agenda and to do lists, the car could make some decisions for the driver. In a future electric vehicle, the car'due south noesis of destinations based on the calendar could ensure that the car gets enough charge to accomplish the day'south activities while in the garage. In add-on, it could optimize a road based on, for example, knowing that the commuter has to get to piece of work, pick up a child at schoolhouse, and store for groceries. Another customization touch lets the commuter select a custom gesture for a role. In BMWs demo with an i3 electrical motorcar, the driver gets out of the car and with a selectable gesture the car parked itself. It wasn't clear to me if whatever specific gestures might be prohibited.

CES 2016 Jeep

Not to be outdone, VW's Herbert Deiss introduced the company'due south Budd-e electric concept van, the modern successor to the iconic VW bus. If features futuristic multi-screen displays controlled by phonation, gesture, and swipes on steering wheel controls and screens. Mercedes-Benz's booth, aside from featuring splendid espresso and fancy Voss water, was themed "it's all nigh me," furthering the personalized experience tendency. The next-generation Eastward-Class will feature a 1920-past-720 pixel all digital musical instrument panel and swipe controls on the steering wheel, bringing high resolution visualizations and animations to the in-automobile experience.

To bring your work with you in the car, Microsoft and Harman demonstrated integration of Office 365 and Cortana productivity features in a custom Rinspeed concept car with multiple loftier resolution dash displays. Cortana phonation features would enable a commuter or rider to take their work anywhere past scheduling meetings, attention video conference calls, and accessing and responding to electronic mail while on the route. Just don't try to redo your Powerpoint dec while driving, unless Cortana is doing it for you.

Car-to-Car and Car-to-Infrastructure Communication

Another recurring theme at CES with connected cars is communication between cars and advice between cars and intelligent route signs or sensors. At Ford's SDL declaration, Amazon's AWS talked about using the ability of the cloud to take vehicle information and utilise it intelligently to avoid potential problems or unsafe situations. In one scenario, a variety of car data including vehicle speed location, and braking is beingness continuously analyzed in the deject. In a scenario where there is express visibility and perhaps limited traction on a road, as in snow, ice, and fog, being able to feed back to cars what lies ahead could tell car systems to react to things their drivers or sensors can't see yet. For example, if cars ahead are braking for an accident or obstacle alee on an icy foggy road, the driver – or in an autonomous or semi autonomous mode, the motorcar – tin can exist alerted to the problem ahead. Then the motorcar can brainstorm to react, such as brake, turn, or pull over to an empty spot on the roadside, before it's too belatedly.

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A somewhat different example of auto-to-infrastructure connection, and automakers branching out to heighten the mobility experience across the vehicle, is BMW's combination LED street light and electric vehicle charging station. Planned to be marketed to cities and due to launch next year, it's smart and continued, of class. WLAN connectivity, sensors that can observe vacant parking spaces, the ability to control the street light by fourth dimension of twenty-four hour period or remote control, and connections to payments apps on mobile phones for electrical charging are office of the characteristic list.

Panasonic and the city of Denver announced a pilot project for smart LED street lamps in the Denver International Airport area. The lights will employ HD cameras that detect pedestrian traffic to dim and burnish the lights, equally well as feed traffic and parking space data to deject back end systems, which will provide analytics and information to enhance vehicle and mobile applications in the time to come.

Autonomous Driving

This is the area that generates the almost attention, but in reality is still years off, because it'south complex from both a technical and policy perspective. Automakers and suppliers were all eager to tout their leadership in this area even so. Ford talked about having thirty autonomous cars on the route testing. Kia laid out its roadmap goals for semi democratic driving past 2020 and fully democratic driving by 2030. Toyota announced that it is funding the Toyota Inquiry Institute to the tune of $1 billion, with labs well-nigh MIT in Boston and Stanford in Palo Alto. Part of the mandate of the new labs volition be to solve the hard problems in car learning and bogus intelligence, every bit Toyota claims only the easy parts of the democratic driving puzzle are solved.

Nvidia appear the Drive PX2, what they called the first supercomputer for cars. It features 12 CPU cores, and has the power of 150 MacBook Pros. With all the sensor and environmental data that needs to be candy in real time, the computing ability needed for autonomous driving will be orders of magnitude higher than even the considerable amount in today'due south well-nigh avant-garde models. The kickoff automotive partner to apply it will be Volvo. Nvidia DIGITS is a evolution solution to enable the neural network-based automobile learning that will be required for safe autonomous driving.

The driving experience is fundamentally irresolute. As computers accept over more than driving functions, drivers will need to make less decisions. Car cameras, sensors, and computing ability can see more and react faster than drivers – it might brand us experience inferior and like nosotros're losing control, but it'due south happening. Perhaps we just need to comprehend the new paradigm. Electric starters, power steering and brakes, automatic transmissions, and many other technological advances fabricated the driving feel much more comfortable, safer and easier in the past century of motoring. Connected auto technology, semi-autonomous driving aids, and ultimately fully democratic driving will once more redefine the transportation experience. It's just evolving into more of an data centric feel, beyond the concrete and sensory experience of controlling the car.