Google Takes Robocars Out of Science Fiction and Into Reality

Google recently gave the Singularity University Executive Program class at NASA Ames in Mountain View, California a sneak peak at its newest invention, a Prius that drives itself.

While little has been released on the project, Google has apparently been testing the Robocar, which is said to have navigated 180,000 miles of California’s roads, although always with a team of two human back-seat drivers. The Prius looks much like any other except for a Lidar, or laser radar, that sits on the top of the car and acts as the vehicle’s eyes. The mechanism, which cost $75,000, rotates 360 degrees and creates a three-dimensional point cloud of the car’s surroundings. The point cloud is then transferred in real-time to a server, located in the trunk of the car, and compared to maps generated previously in order to accurately navigate through its environment.

Having had no incidents so far, except for a rumored fender bender while under human control, the Robocar is the future of safety. Brad Templeton, SU facility and design team member, pointed out that 34,000 people are killed in the US and 1.2 million worldwide by human drivers every year with the average US citizen losing 41 hours a year to traffic congestion. All this can change as Robocars are engineered to avoid accidents. The technology behind the car allows it to analyze traffic patterns and intelligently maneuver itself to optimize safety, time and space. The potential benefits are tremendous.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin, who announced that 10% of the company is working on innovative projects that include self-driving car technology at the Web 2.0 summit in San Francisco, made it clear that the Robocar project is still in research and development. However the future is definitely arriving. Nevada legislature has already begun to draft laws regarding the governance of autonomous vehicles. Plus many other manufactures, including Audi, BMW, Infiniti, Mercedes, and Volvo, are already working on other semi-autonomous features for their vehicles.

Unfortunately, Google’s Prius Robocars will not go on sale anytime soon so we will just have to wait a little longer to fully enter the future of autonomous transportation. But as Brin pointed out, “There's a tremendous opportunity to improve the world."

Toyota and Ford to Collaborate on Hybrid Trucks

The Ford and Toyota Motor companies, usually stiff rivals have decided to join forces in an effort to bring a more fuel efficient, hybrid truck to the market. Ford having superior sales on its truck models, and Toyota with the best selling hybrid on the market seems to be the best combination for the job.

The two companies believe that if they work together, they will be able to bring consumers a more affordable technology sooner. The Collaboration will help both Ford and Toyota meet proposed government fuel standards that will require automakers’ fleets to average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

Ford and Toyota signed an agreement to split development costs for hybrid systems, as well as telematics technology to improve information and entertainment systems.

The agreement was prompted by a chance meeting of the Ford CEO and Toyotas President. The next step for the two companies is a study to determine which technologies they will invest in and which vehicles will get them.

It is expected that the partnerships first hybrid trucks will be on the road later in this decade. Candidates include the Ford F-150, Ford Expedition, Toyota Tundra and Toyota Sequoia.

Although the two companies have stated they will only be joining forces with the hybrid technology and will remain competitors, this partnership is a milestone in the industry. It allows for new technology to be released into the market at a faster rate than would be possible if either of the companies would go at it alone.

"Toyota Friend" Reminds You to Take Care of Your Car

Your cell phone vibrates. Is that a text message, a phone call? No, it’s just a message from your Toyota Prius plug-in, reminding you it needs a charge.

That’s right, Toyota Motor Corporation is developing a social networking service exclusively for Toyota drivers called Toyota Friend. Toyota’s President, Akio Toyoda, hopes that Toyota Friend will offer a way to create a friendship between car and driver. Just as people use Facebook and Twitter to connect with friends, Toyota Friend is meant to link Toyota drivers to their cars, dealerships, and fellow Toyota owners. Indeed, users can message each other, browse for charging stations, find vehicle tips, and even post their findings to other popular social networking sites.

While Toyota Friend has not been launched yet, it is set to premiere in 2012 in Japan. Toyota is working on the project with both Microsoft and San Francisco-based Salesforce.com, making it likely that Toyota Friend will be introduced in the U.S. and worldwide later in the year.

More than just a networking service, Toyota Friend has the potential to take the guess work out of car maintenance. It has the capability to notify users when their car needs an inspection and will automatically make an appointment with a Toyota dealership. And it doesn’t matter where you are when your car is in need: Toyota Friend’s alerts can be viewed via cell phone, computer, and even the car’s interior display.

The next time you are driving in your Toyota Prius, talking to it about its low battery or asking if something is wrong with the engine, consider that in the future your car just might talk back.