eCar Brief

Toyota is Embracing Autonomous Driving in a Different Way

01.18.17 - Toyota Concept-i

The biggest subject on the table, when it comes to research and development in any automotive company, is the development of the autonomous driving tech that will become part of our world over the next several years. Toyota may have the most advanced approach to this self-driving technology as they seem to be focused more on the driver being alert rather than replacing the driver completely in their vehicles. As other companies look to take away any chance of control or overriding the system in place, Toyota has a different approach to their AI.

At the Consumer Electronic Show Toyota brought us a pod shaped car that is called the Concept-i. This concept car looks like something from the future and it seems to be ready to drive off the stage with the automation we want. This new look comes with all the advancements you could expect and as of right now this is simply a concept, but it’s one that’s meant to give us an idea of what Toyota has in mind for the future of their model lineups. The idea behind this new concept is twofold: safety and interaction, which are both important on the road.

It’s no secret that we understand autonomous vehicles will easily be safer than those we currently drive, but our low tolerance for computerized errors continues to make it so we know the need is in place to demonstrate the vehicle can get the job done. One of the fears of most who have questions regarding autonomous vehicles is the actions that can take place when the system fails. For the most part the automotive industry has been staunch in acting as though a breech or a system failure isn’t possible, but most of us know better than that.

With this in mind Toyota has built this Concept-i with an interactive system that will learn about you called Yui. This system makes it easy for you to get to know the car and the system and will even make sure you stay alert on the road. This system is made to tailor everything inside the car to whatever your mood and personality might be. Not only will this system learn about you and create an environment you’ll enjoy, but it will help monitor you when you have to take control of the car from the computer.

In order to help you stay alert, the Yui system will talk to you and help you stay alert to changing conditions on the road and get to know you while you’re driving. This will help to keep your attention up. With a system like this, even though it’s only in a concept car right now, Toyota is showing they are embracing the fact that systems can and will fail at some point and human drivers will have to take over the driving duties. There are other benefits to what this system will do for you on the road; hopefully we’ll get to learn more about the Yui system in near future as Toyota develops it to be put into actual production cars.

This post may contain affiliate links. Meaning a commission is given should you decide to make a purchase through these links, at no cost to you. All products shown are researched and tested to give an accurate review for you.

Exit mobile version