A few days back Guru Brian shared with us his car of the future. His design is built "Green" as it emits no pollutants into the atmosphere. He and I share this dream of a greener future, where we are less dependant on dwendling natural resources.

I to have a plan for the car of the future. It all started 3 years ago when I was working at Motorola. My commute to work everyday was about an hour. At the time the main Highway was under construction and my detour route frequently changed due to traffic. This daily headache led to the creation of the Cartroller Project.

http://cartroller.blogspot.com/

The goal of the Cartroller Project is to create a real-time traffic awareness system. So I set out to build a computer for my car that would send information about the car's location, enigine information, bearings, speed, etc. to a remote server.

Well back in 2006, the list of car computers was either to expensive or two complex for my needs, so I began build my own.

Fast Foward to 2008, the computer market has grown, and now enthusiast around the world have their own flavors.

Computer Choice

For my project, I've decided to use an open source device. I debated for a while on this issue, and found the open source platform a bit more flexible for automotive integration. So I chose to use the Nokia N800.

The N800 runs a linux-based Operating System that is easy to customize. There is a library of thousands of free programs for the device, including Software for bluetooth communication with a Car's On-Board Computer. Using this device, I can track my gps position, current speed, engine temperature, oil pressure, and listen to the radio at the same time!

Now for the best part, Communication!

The n800 has the computer power I need for the project. The one thing missing from the system is a reliable always-on internet connection. The n800 does not have a 3G chip. Instead, I connect to the internet via bluetooth on my Verizon phone. This gives me a reliable connection, and just enough speed for my applications.

Sending the Information

The information from the car is sent to the "Cloud", where I can view it elsewhere later. For those of you that have been living under a rock (or above the "clouds" in this case), The "Cloud" is a term used for the Internet. I call it the cloud because I am storing the data on Google, IBM, or my own servers. I am still working on the software requirements for this project, but a similar project is under way out in California.

Traffic Information provider NAVTEQ and Nokia are partnering up for a project similar to the Cartroller project in Southern California. The goal of the project is to use mobile phones to collect traffic data, creating the most widespread, most accurate traffic reporting system in the world. Volunteers who have compatible devices, can download an application to their phone, that anonymously reports back to the network its speed and position. The information will build an accurate database of traffic conditions, even on smaller side roads. The software is being developed at Berkley. Check it out at http://traffic.berkeley.edu/pilot/.

My car of the future will not only be fuel effecient, but it will have more information about my route before I even know what my route will be!

Posted by Guru Lloyd | tagged: cartroller, future, lloyd, car