Taking the principal that to see through something you need to see what's behind it, they covered the driver's side of the car in mats of LEDs, and mounted a digital SLR camera on the opposite side of the vehicle.

The camera shoots video on the passenger side of the car and the video is displayed in real time on the driver side of the automobile.

This ingenious approach, originally pioneered by scientists at the University of Tokyo, works on the same principles of the blue screen used by TV weather forecasters and Hollywood filmmakers.

The idea also mimics the iPad 2 Halloween costume that seems to displays a gaping hole in the human body.

The next conundrum-what to do with an invisible car ? Take it on a week long tour of Germany, obviously.

In Mercedes' promotional video, stupefied Muggles stare and fall about in shock as the team put the car through its paces along the highways of Hamburg and the bridges of Bavaria.

Meanwhile online. while some pessimistic YouTube users were wary, anticipating that invisible cars would no doubt lead to brutal crashes, others fantasised about bring able to park anywhere at all, without getting a ticket.

See full article here.

(via AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Two of my favorite car companies have partnered together, Ford and Toyota, to work on my favorite drive topology, rear-wheel drive, with everyone's favorite engine system, the hybrid.

● The partnership sets the two companies on equal footing in an effort to create and advanced hybrid system for rear-wheel drive light trucks and SUVs.

● The goal is to deliver greater fuel efficiency while not compromising the performance of the vehicles.

● The team will also work towards developing the next-generation standards for in vehicle internet and digital communication systems.

● Ford and Toyota pledge to deliver the new tech within the coming decade.

I like where their minds are at. However, I would like to see this same hybrid RWD system come to consumer and sport cars. I believe I am not the only one. Perhaps market demand with usher in a new revival for RWD. We can only hope.

Cabe

(Image via Technische Universitaet Muenchen)

I did not know how to turn off the change oil light in my car, it was not in the manual. What did I do? I checked youtube for the answer. Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TU) and Audi are about to bring a video manual you can talk to on all new model Audi cars.

The Avatar-based Virtual Co-driver System (AviCoS) is a animated avatar that can give the driver, or anyone in the car, detailed information on the vehicle using "natural-language dialog." Simply ask a question, and the system will deliver the answer. AviCoS uses an AI that can analyze complete sentences and answer using audio, images, or video on a embedded screen in the car. The avatar can also visually guide the user through the car, or point to areas of interest.

If the user is unfamiliar with a certain feature of the car, the touch screen lets the user enter the "Touch & Tell Mode." The user touches the area of the car where more information is needed, the avatar provides all the background information. While driving, all animations and graphical outputs are suppressed to avoid distracting the driver. However, voice communication will still work. " Overall, AviCoS provides comfortable and interactive access to multimedia content that goes far beyond the information contained in printed manuals. The self-explanatory system can be used without training, making it easy to get familiar with the operation of a vehicle," said TU Institute for Business Informatics' Dr Michael Schermann.

The development team stated that the next step is to sense the drivers mood through elevated speech patterns or tone of voice. When angry, the animations are suppressed.  In a time a difficulty, I would not care to see flashy animations, I suppose.

Eavesdropper

The charge anxiety of an Electric Vehicle (EV) has deterred many from purchase. With few places to recharge, the possibility of being stranded is high. Nissan and the Japan Automobile Federation (JAF) announced a roadside recharging service for all EVs that has lost power. Nissan developed a few roadside vehicles equipped with EV recharging equipment that can be deployed from a Kanagawa branch office. Of course this one office will not service all of Japan, it is first being tested in an extremely limited area. It is a first step in promoting green technology, EVs, and to provide a "safety net" for all EV owners.

Nissan VP of External and Government affairs, Hitoshi Kawaguchi, had this to say about the effort, "As EVs gain wider consumer acceptance, it is important to create a roadside assistance system that can help motorists driving EVs which have run out of battery power, as well as to build a charging infrastructure. Nissan is leveraging the development and trial operation of this roadside service vehicle with charging equipment – and the accompanying staff training – to strengthen cooperation with JAF and to benefit customers. This will build confidence in EV use and contribute toward achieving a society with low carbon emissions."

With the countless towing companies in the world, I can see the same group of people fitted with EV recharging equipment becoming instantly accepted as the first thought in an EV charge emergency. Most gasoline based emergency vehicles are equipped with 300A alternators, a 3-phase AC source at either 12 or 24V. More than enough for a quick charge.

I personally think every EV should come with the "Bat Hook" power line leech, and carte blanche to use it.

Eavesdropper

Per Tunestal, Combustion Engines at Lund University in Sweden researcher, is working on air hybrids cars that he claims are cheaper to manufacture. He states, “The technology is fully realistic. I was recently contacted by a vehicle manufacturer in India which wanted to start making air hybrids."The concept is to store energy from braking and vibration into compressed gas to use later. For stop and go operation, short drives, and acceleration the compressed gas in used to start the inertia on the wheels, where a lot of gasoline/electricity is used. The claims are only from simulations and not actual world tests. Which makes this press release seem like a way to generate funding. Nevertheless, they want to take the concept further. Let's wish them well.

Eavesdropper

Could ‘talking cars’ save lives? Auto companies are developing safety systems using advanced Wi-Fi signals and GPS systems that could allow vehicles to communicate with each other on the road. The cars could then send messages to warn their drivers about potential crashes. Ford Motor Co. is demonstrating the technology at the Washington Auto Show in the nation's capital. The technology sends out multiple messages per second about the vehicle's location, speed, brakes and steering. If a vehicle detects a potential hazard, it can warn the driver. The technology aims to prevent collisions involving a car changing lanes, approaching a stalled vehicle, or heading into an intersection in which another car ignores a red light or a stop sign. The systems, which warn drivers through beeping sounds and flashing red lights at the base of the dashboard, are still five to 10 years from being deployed into the nation's fleet. But Ford officials said the technology, if installed on enough vehicles, could reduce the more than 30,000 people who are killed each year on the nation's highways. Some crash avoidance systems have used radar systems positioned in the front or back of the vehicle. Ford said the GPS/Wi-Fi systems are less costly and can detect movements surrounding the vehicles, including conditions along winding roads where a driver's vision might be obstructed or in side crashes involving a car that barrels through a red light. The broad availability of GPS and Wi-Fi, meanwhile, could help car companies eventually install the technology on vehicles already in the fleet.

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