Using smartphones to prevent traffic jams

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPI9R5JTdt8f_Ry79uqtwziv8H7RhE7h4-8jj5Fwvo5eMTii56luXWSbYBYEEXAHARqnLNh1faz_6U6_ZyEEMd7i8pWvCf8zs-ucTDpGkQhgXNcB9BJGaVuH5zZoto6kethLv8bdXLK_w/s1600/paul_leroux_photo_crop_v3_thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPI9R5JTdt8f_Ry79uqtwziv8H7RhE7h4-8jj5Fwvo5eMTii56luXWSbYBYEEXAHARqnLNh1faz_6U6_ZyEEMd7i8pWvCf8zs-ucTDpGkQhgXNcB9BJGaVuH5zZoto6kethLv8bdXLK_w/s1600/paul_leroux_photo_crop_v3_thumb.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr align="left"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b>Paul Leroux</b></span></td></tr></tbody></table>Smartphones and driving don’t mix, right? Normally, you would get no argument from me. Driving is the one activity where a half-second lapse in attention can translate into a lifetime of regret. <br /><br />But you know, there’s more than one way to use a smartphone in a car. Take Honda, for example. They’ve been experimenting with an approach that may help prevent accidents, rather than cause them.<br /><br />Let’s rewind a bit. A few months ago, I wrote a post on the potential benefits of <a href="http://qnxauto.blogspot.ca/2012/09/will-adaptive-cruise-control-spell-end.html">adaptive cruise control</a>. These benefits include a dramatic reduction of traffic congestion and safer distances between cars. <br /><br />Well, guess what: it seems that a smartphone app can have much the same effect. Recently, Honda equipped a number of drivers with an app that monitors acceleration and deceleration. When a subject drives in a way that avoids causing a traffic jam, the app screen turns green; otherwise, it shows blue.<br /><br />Simple enough, right? And yet, the results were dramatic: formation of traffic jams was delayed by up 6 minutes and fuel efficiency shot up by 22%. Not bad for a smartphone app.<br /><br />I am, of course, skipping a few details. Read more about the study in <a href="http://techon.nikkeibp.co.jp/english/NEWS_EN/20130322/272512/"><b>Tech-On!</b></a>, an outlet of Nikkei Business Publications. <br /><br />

Using smartphones to prevent traffic jams

Paul Leroux Smartphones and driving don’t mix, right? Normally, you would get no argument from me. Driving is the one activity where a half-...

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The challenge of creating an (auto)mobile user experience

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfU3tT-xZXTZHfiZ6OIVY4_l1XenIHWzEeYkk7UyTHiPKZAKV5R9cXErdprmGO7hWj56sEBfsS-lws5ID7NCTER9J8EVfVg-AhSP1jTg6M9d0nY_QQkCsYfhXA9yJtMYRVgeksZ6Mhtg/s1600/andrew_poliak.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigfU3tT-xZXTZHfiZ6OIVY4_l1XenIHWzEeYkk7UyTHiPKZAKV5R9cXErdprmGO7hWj56sEBfsS-lws5ID7NCTER9J8EVfVg-AhSP1jTg6M9d0nY_QQkCsYfhXA9yJtMYRVgeksZ6Mhtg/s1600/andrew_poliak.jpg" /></a></div>On March 12, I had the honor of joining a distinguished group of panelists at a luncheon for the Los Angeles <a href="http://www.motorpressguild.org/">Motor Press Guild</a>. The panelists included:<br /><br /><ul><li>Michelle Avary — director of technology strategy, <a href="http://www.harman.com/EN-US/Solutions/Car/Pages/INFOTAINMENT.aspx">HARMAN International</a></li><li>Henry Bzeih — head of <a href="http://www.kia.com/uvo/#/technology">Kia’s North American Infotainment Technology & Business Unit</a></li><li>Jim Pisz — corporate manager of North American business strategy, <a href="http://www.toyota.com/entune/">Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A.</a></li><li>Wayne Ward — vice president of emerging solutions, <a href="http://m2m.sprint.com/m2m-solutions/velocity/?ECID=vanity:velocity">Sprint Nextel</a></li><li>Andrew Poliak (myself) — director of automotive business development, <a href="http://www.qnx.com/">QNX Software Systems</a></li></ul><br />The purpose of the panel was to share information on trends in the connected car space and in the automotive application ecosystem. The panel was well attended, with journalists from publications like the <i>New York Times</i>, and with representatives from companies like Alpine, Beats by Dr. Dre, Hyundai, and Toyota.<br /><br />Two things stood out for me. First, the press really picked up on the need for solutions that can offer ease of use, upgradeability, and reliability while also reducing distraction and liability. Second, an expert witness hired by car companies to testify in Lemon Law suits told the panel that he was already being hired to provide testimony in cases involving in-vehicle electronics. He speculated that the technology described on the panel was going to “make him rich.”<br /><br />His comments help illustrate a point. A car isn’t a mobile phone. OEMs and end-users may want the same kind of fresh and updateable experience that a phone can provide, but unlike a phone, an in-car infotainment system must be simple to use even while you’re driving down the highway. Such systems offer the ideal environment for a hard real-time OS that can also enable the latest consumer technologies and applications in a reliable and easy-to-use way.<br /><br />Jim Pisz mentioned a sign he saw at the Geneva Motor Show. The sign said “Don’t Worry, Be Appy.” That sign makes me realize that the industry is at a crossroads. OEMs want access to consumer app developers and, in some cases, the apps themselves. At the same time they want a reliable solution that they won’t have to “worry” about. With QNX’s pedigree of reliability and amazing app ecosystem, we are uniquely positioned to help OEMs build “appy” cars, without the worry.<br /><br />

The challenge of creating an (auto)mobile user experience

On March 12, I had the honor of joining a distinguished group of panelists at a luncheon for the Los Angeles Motor Press Guild . The panelis...

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The 10 qualities of highly effective hands-free systems

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJPq2tNT1-b76-UN7kJTtYO15jYb5oJ6dRyxopN5-gTDCZuDx_2RQEV__RkwHZxyBUsV_g1cRbUh6iy9hrxETJ34PD8McVwHCuwXPfr0WC_28dHd1W8y9mUIeOk2reT2MhSR6jjWD_U7U/s1600/paul_leroux_photo_crop_v3_thumb_100_px.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJPq2tNT1-b76-UN7kJTtYO15jYb5oJ6dRyxopN5-gTDCZuDx_2RQEV__RkwHZxyBUsV_g1cRbUh6iy9hrxETJ34PD8McVwHCuwXPfr0WC_28dHd1W8y9mUIeOk2reT2MhSR6jjWD_U7U/s1600/paul_leroux_photo_crop_v3_thumb_100_px.jpg" /></a>The first time I saw — and heard — a hands-free kit in action was in 1988. (Or was it 1989? Meh, same difference.) At the time, I was pretty impressed with the sound quality. Heck, I was impressed that hands-free conversations were even possible. You have to remember that mobile phones were still an expensive novelty — about $4000 in today’s US dollars. And good grief, they looked like this:<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/8iE0OH5FmiU?rel=0" width="420"></iframe><br /><br />It’s almost a shock to see how far we’ve come since 1988. We’ve become conditioned to devices that cost far less, do far more, and fit into much smaller pockets. (Though, admittedly, the size trend for smartphones has <a href="http://www.phonearena.com/news/Average-display-sizes-keep-on-growing-in-tech-smartphones-lead-the-way_id35634">shifted into reverse</a>.) Likewise, we’ve become conditioned to hands-free systems whose sound quality would put that 1998 kit to shame. The sound might have been okay at the time, but because of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contrast_effect">contrast effect</a>, it wouldn’t pass muster today. Our ears have become too discerning.<br /><br />Which brings me to a <a href="http://www.qnx.com/download/feature.html?programid=24275">new white paper</a> from Phil Hetherington and Andrew Mohan of the acoustics team at QNX Software Systems. Evaluating hands-free solutions from various suppliers can be a complex endeavor, for the simple fact that hands-free systems have become so sophisticated and complex. To help simplify the decision process, Phil and Andrew have boiled the problem down to 10 key factors:<br /><br /><ul><li>Acoustic echo cancellation<br /></li><li>Noise reduction and speech reconstruction<br /></li><li>Multi-channel support<br /></li><li>Automatic gain control<br /></li><li>Equalization<br /></li><li>Wind buffet suppression<br /></li><li>Intelligibility enhancement<br /></li><li>Noise dependent receive gain<br /></li><li>Bandwidth extension<br /></li><li>Wideband support</li></ul><br />Ultimately, you must judge a hands-free solution by the quality of the useful sound it delivers. By focusing on these 10 essentials, you can make a much sounder judgment (pun fully intended).<br /><br />Recently, <i>Electronic Design</i> published a version of this paper <a href="http://electronicdesign.com/communications/essentials-automotive-hands-free-communications">on their website</a>. For a longer version, which includes a decision checklist, visit the <a href="http://www.qnx.com/download/feature.html?programid=24275">QNX download center</a>. <br /><br />

The 10 qualities of highly effective hands-free systems

The first time I saw — and heard — a hands-free kit in action was in 1988. (Or was it 1989? Meh, same difference.) At the time, I was pretty...

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