DETROIT—Hundreds of technologies to make cars run more efficiently, more safely, and in greater comfort are on display the Convergence 2006 technology conference. Sponsored by SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) International, Convergence runs every second year in Detroit.
Take active cruise control (ACC), for instance. Radar-based ACC costs $2,000-plus to maintain safe following distances from the car in front. Infrared ACC has the potential to cut the cost, with only a slight fall-off in range; it's unclear if the cost could be halved, which is necessary for widespread adoption.
Blind spot detection warns if another car is one lane over in an area not well-covered by the mirrors. Suppliers showed devices using radar, infrared, laser, and heat detection. One supplier, Siemens VDO, showed a concept car with not one but three dashboard LCDs. A single cockpit controller, like BMW's iDrive, handles all three. When the passenger touches the controller, the hand completes an electrical circuit and the controller works with the passenger display, not the driver display.
For entertainment, virtually every supplier showed iPod integration into factory radios, a couple showed USB connectors that handle all music players, and technology provider Ibiquity Digital hinted that 50 car models from eight or nine automakers should have HD radio by the 2009 model year. Right now just BMW offers HD radio with a pricy $500 factory-only module, but replacement radios cost as little as $200. Click for a slideshow of highlights from Convergence 2006.
To read about the technology at the Paris Auto Show this year, click here.
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