Expert Panel: Telematics
Expert final thoughts
New mobility trends which challenge the idea of traditional car ownership, such as car sharing, are helping to reduce the amount of vehicles on the road, therefore easing congestion and air pollution. the data created from connectivity is key if anything meaningful is to come out of technology. He said: “Connectivity is providing a very high level of insight into the vehicle and how the vehicle is driven. This will increase over time. But modern mobility requires that insight to be interpreted into meaningful information, and the presentation of that information needs to be instant and convenient. Apps will become ever more important as they link vehicle data, driver data, and useful information together to help manage modern mobility. Apps covering route planning, fuel stops, and journey advice will turn connected data into more and more compelling services for all.” Yon Copitch from Traffilog believes that the information from connected cars should be available as one solution: “The connected vehicle is the future with intelligent satellite navigation, CCTV, WiFi, passenger counting, alcohol testing, tachograph download, accident reporting, and messaging already available as one solution. It is inevitable that fleet managers will look to single supplier technology and the avoidance and expense of multiple sims.” The future In February this year, the UK government announced it is to invest £20 million to develop the next generation of autonomous vehicles. The projects will research and develop enhanced communication between vehicles and roadside infrastructure or urban information systems, including new ‘talking car technologies’. The UK government, and indeed many others around the world, believe self driving cars can lead to less congestion, air pollution, and improved road safety For fleets, this could also lead to improved productivity, as staff can spend time working on a laptop or making calls instead of driving. Whilst this vision may seem futuristic and unrealistic, many vehicles already have
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self‑driving functions, such as auto parking. What’s more, autonomous vehicles are already being tested on roads in Bristol, Coventry, Milton Keynes and Greenwich. Jack Palmer from TU Automotive comments: “The IoT outside the vehicle will be realised by connecting to the smart city – road signs, traffic lights and crossings – so that the vehicle can paint a fuller picture of its surroundings. This will be especially relevant for the autonomous vehicle which will need connectivity to be truly realised.” Nick Walker from RAC shares his vision of the future: “Looking forward we may live in a world where the traveler summons their autonomous pod from the touch of a button on their smart watch or device, and gets taken to their destination, without having to think about where they’re going or how to get there, as the connected vehicle will do all the thinking for them. This leaves us free to work or catch up with people while we’re travelling, so that time commuting or crawling through traffic, which is often seen as dead time, can be eliminated.” Jack Palmer, TU-Automotive believes connectivity will improve other areas of our lives. He says: “Cross ‘smart-industry’ collaboration will be seen much more in the next few years. Connected home features (thermostats, lighting, white goods) will be able to be controlled from the vehicle. Likewise, connected healthcare and retail will find use cases in the car. Already, we are seeing driver monitoring (such as tracking blood sugar levels for diabetics) entering the vehicle and in-vehicle digital media and commerce (through targeted advertising or POIs) are presenting another way for brands to reach consumers. And that’s just within the vehicle.” L FURTHER INFORMATION www.greenfleet.net
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Yon Copitch The connected vehicle is the future with intelligent satellite navigation, CCTV, Wi-Fi, passenger counting, alcohol testing, tachograph download, accident reporting, and messaging already available as one solution and provided by Traffilog. It is inevitable that fleet managers will look to single supplier technology and the avoidance and expense of multiple sims. Nick Walker Connectivity is providing a very high level of insight into the vehicle and how the vehicle is driven. This will increase over time. But modern mobility requires that insight to be interpreted into meaningful information, and the presentation of that information needs to be instant and convenient. Apps will become ever more important as they link vehicle data, driver data, and useful information together to help manage modern mobility. Apps covering route planning, fuel stops, and journey advice will turn connected data into more compelling services for all. Martin Kadhim We see the biggest opportunities for adding value likely to come in the area of driver well-being. For example, we are already developing enhancements that will bring a whole range of additional features to drivers ranging from automatic connection to emergency services in the event of an accident, to forwarding location and fault details to breakdown services in the event of a mechanical fault. Our view is that there is only so far you can go monitoring drivers every second of the day and have more to gain by improving their well-being and helping facilitate better driving. Jack Palmer The vehicle of the future will continue to get smarter with the number of data points connecting to it becoming greater. Cross‑‘smart industry’ collaboration will be seen much more in the next few years. Connected home features (thermostats, lighting, white goods) will be able to be controlled from the vehicle. Likewise, connected healthcare and retail will find use cases in the car. Already, we are seeing driver monitoring (such as tracking blood sugar levels for diabetics) entering the vehicle. Meanwhile, in-vehicle digital media and commerce (through targeted advertising or POIs) are presenting another way for brands to reach consumers.