For Toyota, SDVs are first and foremost about safety and security. The company revealed some of the technologies it is developing to bring road accidents down to zero.
Seeing ahead by observing drivers
So far, we have showcased technologies that anticipate dangers by drawing on information from outside the vehicle. However, Toyota is also developing predictive technologies that use information collected on board.
For example, imagine a driver glancing aside just as another car cuts in from a neighboring lane. Before that driver loses their cool, the AI jumps in: “That was close, wasn’t it?”
Using a psychological technique known as “affect labeling,” this simple comment is likely to have a calming effect on the driver.
In another scenario, a driver looking to make a left turn is distracted by a conversation with a passenger. Before they reach the intersection, the system cautions them to take care and applies the brakes.
Such timely advice is made possible by monitoring the driver’s emotions and anticipating potential dangers using information captured by microphones and cameras.
What’s more, Toyota’s Arene software platform speeds up the development of these AI-powered technologies.
Touted as “more than just an operating system,” Arene is also a platform for collecting and analyzing driving data, as well as a development environment for efficiently testing software.
In the future, Toyota plans to make Arene available to other carmakers as well.
Creating the necessary partnerships
A major prerequisite for pursuing Toyota’s three-pronged approach is a seamless, low-latency communication environment.
Everyone knows what it’s like to have no phone signal or a slow connection, but in a car carrying people at high speeds, such situations could have fatal outcomes.
To mitigate these risks, Toyota needs to leverage the new capabilities of 5G and collaborate closely with telecommunications providers, securing priority for vehicle-related transmissions and access to servers near traffic data sources.
The ultimate dream for a mobility society is zero traffic accidents. It cannot be achieved through the efforts of any one company, nor advances in individual vehicles. Toyota continues to pursue its three-pronged approach, working toward a future where everyone can feel truly safe and secure.