Internet Cars - The future of automobiles

Internet cars (a.k.a Connected Cars) are cars which are fully connected to other systems or devices by a local area network. This technique provides data sharing on both sides of the car. It does not matter if the person is outside the car or inside it. Manufacturers make sure to provide comfort to car users. With the connection, they also provide safety features with short-range communication that is dedicated to the cars only. This safety feature is known as DSRC (Dedicated short-range communication).

From Wikipedia:

Dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) are one-way or two-way short-range to medium-range wireless communication channels specifically designed for automotive use and a corresponding set of protocols and standards.

History behind Internet Cars

Connected cars were first made in the year 1996-1997. Earlier these cars were manufactured with a voice recognition system but after some time, it has been enhanced with safety features by adding cellular service in the cars. Cellular service is useful for providing GPS location to the service station. 

Internet Cars as a Concept

With time, manufacturers are ready to add various features. They have enhanced some as Voice recognition, GPS location system, Cellular Network, and now GSM feature. In today's era, internet cars are the most significant cars available. The cars themselves are now smart. Some cars also have the feature to start the engine remotely whereas, some others also allow you to operate the radio, AC, etc of the car using a mobile app. There are some cars which have inbuilt Wi-Fi hotspot and an interacting system like smart signals. 

For example, In India, manufacturers have introduced two of these cars. One is the Hyundai Venue and the other one is MG (Morris Garages) Hector-India's first internet car. Hyundai is an Indian brand and MG is a Chinese brand. 

Types of connecting techniques

There are five connecting techniques available for internet cars

• Vehicle to Infrastructure-V2I
• Vehicle to Vehicle-V2V
• Vehicle to Cloud-V2C
• Vehicle to Pedestrian-V2P
• Vehicle to Everything-V2E

Apart from connecting techniques, these cars have three types of calling systems:

• bCall (breakdown call): 24-hours roadside assistance in the events if the car breaks down
• eCall (emergency call): emergency services in the event of an accident
• iCall as information call: driving route and other information related to the location

These support services are artificial intelligence-based and good for 24x7 safety measures on roads.

The encapsulation of internet cars is not new. However, in India, these have a future with the integration of various brands. Some of them are machine-learning enabled capabilities with assistance support. 

References

1. Connected Car  
2. Smart Wheels- From Connected Cars to Internet Cars