Oct 1st 2013, 14:30, by Martyn Williams, IDG News Service
When you sit in the car of the future, you won't need to worry about keys or adjusting your seat and you'll even get a quick health check when you sit in the driver's seat.
At least, that's the dream of Japan's Alps Electric. The company has built a futuristic dashboard and a driver cabin that's packed with the company's sensor technology and realizes these features. It's on show this week at the Ceatec expo in Japan.
Martyn Williams
The keys are gone because the car features a facial recognition system. If the driver isn't registered to use the car it won't start. And don't think about drinking while sick. A line of sensors checks basic vital signs, such as heart rate, and won't let the car start if it judges the driver isn't fit enough to drive safely.
An NFC (near-field communication) sensor in the dashboard provides a path between the car's IT system and a smartphone, which in turn connects to the Internet. If the driver needs to adjust any controls on the cell phone while driving, all that's required is a wave of the hand. A gesture recognition system means drivers don't have to use the phone's screen while driving -- something that's illegal in many countries.
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