Sunday Times 2
Would you make friends with your CAR?
View(s):It might sound like something out of a science fiction novel, but Toyota’s next concept car promises to read a driver’s emotions.
The Japanese car maker will unveil the FV2 at the Tokyo Motor Show next month, but has revealed that the car is designed to ‘forge stronger physical and emotional connections with the driver’.
The single-occupancy model has technology onboard, which Toyota claims allows the driver and FV2 to develop a relationship of trust and understanding, similar to that between a rider and a horse.
The vehicle uses voice and image recognition to determine the driver’s mood and can check driving history to suggest destinations.
An augmented reality display will be shown on the inside of the windscreen, which appears to flip up, and excitingly for people who are indecisive when picking the colour of their next car, the body colour and exterior display of the FV2 can be changed at will.
Drivers of the concept car will operate it by standing up and shifting their body intuitively to move the vehicle forwards and backwards as well as left and right, as the car does not have a steering wheel.
Toyota said it also uses intelligent transport system technology to connect with other vehicles nearby and highway infrastructure to capture safety information, such as giving advance warning of vehicles in blind spots or at junctions.
The company said the car has been designed to capture the spirit of its ‘fun-to-drive philosophy’.
Toyota has launched an app for iOS and Android devices that offers a sneak peak of the whimsical model that lets users try driving the FV2 and participate in a ‘realtime championship’.
It has a function called ‘illumination’ that shows emotions and messages on the car’s body and when gamers complete stages in the app, they collect new illuminations to make their FV2 grow.
© Daily Mail, London