Connected car tech has taken another huge leap forward in 2020. With the influential tech conference CES coming up, Asia-based electronics manufacturer stunned audiences by using its press conference to debut an electric vehicle.
What was most interesting about the reveal, however, was the focus of the language – specifically, on the connected nature of the car. Going beyond the simple nature of being linked up to assistant apps, the plans in store for the next generation of connected vehicles will be truly transformative to congested and smoggy streets.
Simplifying repairs for all
Car breakdown led to The Guardian Nigeria recording the highest level of road traffic fatalities in cities in early 2018. A lack of knowledge, access to knowledge, the skills to carry out repairs and simple negligence led to this situation arising.
Smart technology will address this in its entirety. The information that most car owners require to make repairs on the road and prevent accidents is completely free and available on the internet; the integration of digital assistants into cars makes it that bit more available.
Next generation tech will be able to actively scan and diagnose car problems from the smart device, taking this capability to another level.
Removing the Risk
What if the risk of accident could be removed altogether? ZDNet have outlined the potential of LIDAR – laser directed radar – which can quite literally see around corners.
Equipping connected vehicles with this technology allows them to quietly communicate, minimizing the risk of collisions from unseen oncoming traffic and much more effectively managing the risk posed by the often chaotic traffic situation in cities like Lagos.
This, in turn, will keep the roads running in a far smoother fashion and reduce the chance of serious collisions causing a slowdown of the city’s congested networks.
Removing the Pollution
A complete removal of congestion will never be seen. However, what can be done is a movement towards vastly reducing the amount of pollution in the air. New smart tech will provide options here, too.
Nigeria has a huge potential for solar energy; statistics show that the likes of Lagos will experience, at minimum, 3.5 hours of sunshine every day. According to CNET, this can easily be harnessed through the roll-out of rooftop solar panels.
Harnessing the latest in portable solar technology, these panels will be able to directly feed into the car and power it. Using retrofit kits that are currently taking off in America, this will even provide conversion from older combustion engines to new, sleeker models of electric vehicles.
This will solve the pollution problem once and for all by removing the presence of pollutants from cars in the first place. Using big data, cars equipped with this kit can communicate to move into areas with the most effective levels of sunlight, and to provide boosts to flagging cars.
Nigeria has very congested cities. Connected vehicles are going to make up for this disparity. Through the use of incredible new tech, the likes of Lagos and Benin City may finally clear the skies and get the roads moving again.
