Initially, the German automobile manufacturer’s plan to make self-driving cars is not quite surprising. However, the company unleashed a new twist: a smartwatch to control your car.
When Audi’s team took to the stage, led by Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, an Audi board member for technical development, no one expected the company to announce a wearable, but the reception to it was mostly positive. Tied directly to Audi’s piloted driving A7 prototype, the wearable device allows the driver to communicate with the car. Based on the initial presentation, one of the device’s functions will be to unlock the car.
However, it’s still unclear whether that wearable device communication will include things such as controlling the vehicle’s engine, windows, temperature and other advanced features.
One of the fact is that the smart watch uses NFC (near field communication), so it will work even when its battery is drained, ensuring you don’t get locked out of your car simply because your wearable doesn’t have enough power left. Calling it a kind of “mobile key,” the company didn’t offer much detail on the functions of the smartwatch or when it will be available. However, just seeing the notion of a wrist control for one’s car presented by an established player like Audi was pretty exciting.
It looks like Kitt from the famous Knight Rider series is just got a little closer to becoming a reality.