In a mobility keynote presentation at TU Automotive Detroit 2016, Tom Gebhardt, President and Chief Operating Officer of Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America, highlighted the gaps in providing a better mobility experience for consumers and how they can be solved with improved interfaces and predictive technology.
“In addition to keeping drivers’ eyes on the road, we also need to consider the cognitive load new vehicle features, systems and consumer applications bring to drivers as well as the impact they have on concentration,” Mr. Gebhardt said. “Cognitive overload impairs our ability to anticipate and respond to our environment. It’s a big consideration when it comes to increasingly complex infotainment and cockpit systems.”
Mr. Gebhardt noted the fundamental issue is that the industry continues to project the phone and the tablet into the vehicle’s center console, despite the fundamental differences in how we use a handheld device versus the center console. The result is that critical information is available through too many sources and gathering it all in one place can be frustrating, time-consuming and, if it takes the driver’s attention from the road, unsafe.
Closing the gap means stop trying to replicate the consumer app experience in the car, but rather deliver the same services in a way that ensures a simpler, faster, more intuitive and seamlessly integrated experience.
“By a providing a holistic service-focused approach, which we’ve done with our OneConnect platform, we can merge the information so drivers are served up everything they want, when they want it, without searching,” Mr. Gebhardt added.
In addition to such interface improvements, the breakthrough solution is creating a way to synthesize repeatable patterns of weekly travel and errands without the driver having to manually select weather, news, traffic and entertainment to complement the route. In other words, predictive technology.
Mr. Gebhardt noted, “You program the system to your personal preference and the system will start to learn your habits, likes and dislikes, providing information verbally and letting the driver take appropriate actions seamlessly. It will understand time and place, so as you move from your house to your car, the vehicle becomes your environment rather than your home. “
Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America debuted OneConnect earlier this year to help close these gaps and create full in-vehicle personalization through predictive behavior. The system was built on the habits that we subscribe ourselves to as human beings. We listen to similar stations at the same times of day and most days we are driving to and from work at the same times. Through advanced predictive learning algorithms, OneConnect is able to notice those habits and curate the audio experience for drivers.
The OneConnect platform, on which the OEM has complete control over branding, opens up the potential for drivers to receive direct notifications from the automaker or dealers about software updates, recalls, service reminders and other messages that can be seamlessly and unobtrusively integrated into vehicle audio at preferred times for the driver according to the unique user interface needs of each automaker. In addition, brands are able to connect with drivers who opt-in to build brand loyalty and deepen lifelong relationships through discounts and special offers. OneConnect also allows drivers to easily know the details of what a check-engine light means or order a sandwich from their favorite restaurant.
“The experience that’s been missing is a way for consumers – through one single, intelligent feed – to easily assemble their own personal FM-like radio station that lets them discover the greatest variety of content and information that is most relevant to them and what they are doing at any given moment,” said Tom Gebhardt. “The hardest thing to do is create easy-to-use products, but that’s what we’re doing.”
Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America views the automobile as the starting point for OneConnect, and is looking to expand into other verticals in the future. To learn more about the OneConnect platform, click here.
