Continental shows off holistic connectivity car

Cars of the future will connect drivers with their home, work and entertainment, while enhancing safety and productivity, says Continental. The German group is showing off its holistic connectivity car at the ITS World Congress this week – and believes its features could be in widespread use in five years’ time.
October 6, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
Opening doors: Christian Bouchard (left) and Pascal Clochard

Cars of the future will connect drivers with their home, work and entertainment, while enhancing safety and productivity, says 260 Continental. The German group is showing off its holistic connectivity car at the ITS World Congress this week – and believes its features could be in widespread use in five years’ time.

“The technology is not the problem,” explains Jean-Yves le Gall, International Design Manager, Continental Automotive Systems. “It is connected to the digital environment. You need critical mass, enough users.” As well as accessing online services and apps in the car – with preferences and individual settings of devices seamlessly transferred into the vehicle - the driver can also connect in-car to systems such as home heating.

Continental’s concept car also features an automated voice interface which is sophisticated enough to question whether the driver really wants the climate control to be changed, for instance. “That sort of dialogue sounds natural and is of more value to the user,” le Gall suggests. “If we want people to accept the service, it must not be too intrusive.”

The vehicle system can also authenticate individual drivers through face recognition, rendering it less of a target for thieves. Increasing digitalization and connectivity allows the usage of new data sources for intelligent management of transport – and as part of this smart mobility ecosystem, partnering with other companies gives them access to richer customer profile data too.

Related Content

  • April 10, 2012
    Nissan Unveils advances in connected car technology
    Carlos Ghosn, Nissan Motor Company's chief executive officer, has unveiled initiatives in automotive communications technology intended to move Nissan and Infiniti into a leadership position in the connected car content and services market. In announcing the collaboration with companies such as Google, Pandora Radio and Intel at the New York International Auto Show, Ghosn said, "It's clear that consumers expect to be connected wherever they are, and that includes the time spent in their automobiles. To mee
    Read More
  • June 5, 2015
    Mega trends will challenge transport technology
    Jon Masters investigates some of the longer term trends that will shape transportation over the next 20 years. Business analysts and investors have already placed their bets on a future of technological smart mobility services. In December last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that Uber, the on-demand taxi and lift share smartphone app and start-up business, had been valued at $41.2 billion which, as the Journal reported, is an incredible vote of confidence for a company only five years old.
    Read More
  • April 7, 2017
    Ertico weaves tunnel visions into the ‘big picture’
    As he takes the wheel at Ertico - ITS Europe, Jacob Bangsgaard talks to ITS International about the challenges and opportunities facing the organisation and the ITS industry. Ertico - ITS Europe’s new CEO, Jacob Bangsgaard, is no stranger to the organisation having spent five years there before moving to the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile) in 2006. Four years later he became director general of the FIA’s Region I (EMEA), which represents more than 100 mobility clubs, and in 2012 he joined Er
    Read More
  • April 7, 2017
    Ertico weaves tunnel visions into the ‘big picture’
    As he takes the wheel at Ertico - ITS Europe, Jacob Bangsgaard talks to ITS International about the challenges and opportunities facing the organisation and the ITS industry. Ertico - ITS Europe’s new CEO, Jacob Bangsgaard, is no stranger to the organisation having spent five years there before moving to the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile) in 2006. Four years later he became director general of the FIA’s Region I (EMEA), which represents more than 100 mobility clubs, and in 2012 he joined Er
    Read More

Highlighted Content