New Infotainment System Aims to Enhance Functionality, Curb Distracted Driving
Automakers may talk a big game about preventing distracted driving and improving safety, but at the same time they continue to provide distracting infotainment systems.
Arguably a response to consumer demand, a recent Harris Poll study of 2,000 drivers suggests there’s serious apprehension on the part of car shoppers too, with more than three in four car owners reporting that they believe in-car connectivity technologies are too distracting and even dangerous to have.
They’re not the only ones either. Countless AutoGuide.com reviews point out the drawbacks of touch-screen infotainment systems, like the slow and buggy MyFord Touch system (seen at the right), or the great-in-theory, but confusing-in-practice Cadillac CUE system.
There is, however, one software maker that is certain it has a solution that is innovative and intuitive, while giving the driver what they want.
“We looked at the critical response to MyFord Touch and CUE,” Andy Gryc says. Gryc is a marketing manager at QNX, a software arm of BlackBerry owner Research in Motion. QNX is at the heart of the Playbook tablet, as well as automotive infotainment systems in many cars today, including Audi, BMW, Land Rover and Porsche . Today, Gryc is speaking about the next step of its platform, CAR 2, and how its going to combat distracted driving.
“[Infotainment systems] need to be something that look, smell and act like the car,” Gryc says.
QNX has just finished up the final touches on its new CAR 2 platform, but what is the company doing to instill confidence in the world of infotainment systems?
For starters, the QNX Car 2 platform is highly customizable. That’s why automakers like it so much. An automaker can grab the system, personalize and brand it, so it can look and act different than another automaker’s QNX based system.
The vanilla (non-branded) CAR 2 system currently looks simple and clean with a consistent design. Outside of the traditional features like a media player, navigation systems and climate controls, the CAR 2 platform has its own apps, much like a smart-phone or tablet.
For example, the system can have vehicle-centric apps, like an interactive manual or service appointment scheduler. For the driver who loves to be connected, there’s social media integration for Facebook and Twitter. QNX showed off a few other useful apps like a weather information app, which provides much more information about the weather than just the temperature. Another cool app was a parking spot locator for lots which are using the “BestParking” service.
To make things even more familiar with drivers, the system can have different profiles for different drivers, ensuring that whoever is driving the car is set up appropriately, just like memory seating.
Gryc explains that QNX’s system runs on something called HTML5, the same core technology behind many of the popular web-based apps you likely use on your internet browser. This means that QNX’s system is future-ready, and that developers can modify existing iPhone or web-based apps for the car platform.
MAKING THE DRIVER HAPPY
“A lot of people want to use the phone in the car unfettered,” says Gryc. “A lot of people think that they’re perfectly safe using their phone in the car, but get scared when other drivers are using it.”
He explains one way QNX’s CAR 2 will help. “The systems inside the car will provide access to the same things that they’re used to.”
The goal is to maintain the driving experience. “For example, the driver will say a voice command, and the car can update their Facebook status, and post what you’re listening to,” Gryc explains.
Voice recognition keeps coming up as an important part of solving distracted driving, but in practice it becomes even more difficult to stay focused, since you need to remember many key words to perform the right action.
DESIGN TO BLAME FOR DISTRACTION
Thanks to great tablets and smart-phones, the expectations of a touch-screen system have changed greatly. Compare the design and interface of a car’s infotainment system to that of a mobile device like an iPhone or iPad, and it’s easy to see why consumers are confused, and critics frustrated. The design isn’t consistent, engaging or intuitive.
“These ‘distractions’ could be eliminated by improving UI design,” says Victor Tang, a freelance graphic designer and user-experience expert. He adds, “There are too many bad designs that really cause confusion and frustration to the user.”
Tang argues that there needs to be a better range of customization options, to cater to the different levels of tech-savvy consumers out there.
“Not everyone has the same needs or skills and should be able to personalize according to their lifestyles,” he says. He argues that the customer should be in charge of the features they wish to include or leave out depending on experience levels.
QNX is on a similar wavelength. While the actual car owner won’t be in charge of the interface, QNX’s client (the automaker) will be.
Gryc explains that there’s a fine-line to walk when it comes to car-infotainment design. “What you have to design for a car is a lot more boring looking,” he says. “Things have to look drab in order to make it less compelling, so the driver is looking at the road.”
A SERVICE CENTER IN YOUR CAR
So while your phone and tablet are aiming to provide a rich and animated experience, your car will be much more sedate. However, QNX might be borrowing a successful idea from your iPhone: an app-store.
“We’ve been talking about the possibility of hosting an app-store,” explains Gryc. “We want to give developers a platform, but some automakers might not want that, and there might not be enough volume.” There are still questions to be answered: would you want there to be a huge selection of apps available for the QNX based system, or only apps that have been verified or made specifically by your automaker? “We’d like to control that ecosystem if it gets to that point,” he says.
The decisions made with the CAR 2 platform seem to be in line with a lot of what both the consumers and automakers are hoping for. Thanks to a focus on clean interface design and versatility, cars equipped with QNX can help establish a confident relationship between infotainment system and driver. If that does happen, ‘distracted driving’ might be hard-parked once and for all.
Sami has an unquenchable thirst for car knowledge and has been at AutoGuide for the past six years. He has a degree in journalism and media studies from the University of Guelph-Humber in Toronto and has won multiple journalism awards from the Automotive Journalist Association of Canada. Sami is also on the jury for the World Car Awards.
More by Sami Haj-Assaad
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I have been driven out of the market for a new car because I HATE the touch screen feature that is now standard in most new vehicles. I have rented a number of vehicles with them and find that they can be quite a distraction. As far as I'm concerned, they are also unnecessary. Give me my buttons, knobs and switches. I can easily accomplish what I need by one touch of a button whereas with the touch screen, multiple steps may be required to do what one button did. It would be nice if manufacturers would give the buyer a choice instead of them expecting buyers to embrace all the electronic gadgets. The touch screen feature is standard in most new cars with the exception of some stripped down base models. I am a car nut and enjoy driving, but what I am looking for is a nice comfortable car that can get me from point A to point B. I don't need a video game on wheels. I turn off my phone while driving so blue tooth is a waste. I don't stream music or use an MP3 player. Just need a slot for my CD with a good AM/FM stereo. I often wonder how much all of this technology adds to the price of a new car. I know that I am not willing to pay for fetures that I don't want or need. I have CASH IN HAND, but can't find anything that I am willing to pay for. Guess I'll be saving a lot of money.