"Outstanding Technologies In Todays' Cars"

                                                                               

Over the years, the technology involved in manufacturing an automobile has become more advanced, as automakers shift their focus from basic transportation to the design of features that make a vehicle safer, more comfortable, and more easily operated. One such feature is the global positioning system (GPS).

A GPS unit consists of a space segment, a control segment, and a user segment. The space segment is a constellation of two dozen satellites orbiting the earth twice every 24 hours, at approximately 10,900 nautical miles above the earth's surface (1). These satellites are funded and controlled by the U.S. Department of Defense. The control segment is a series of monitoring stations located at different sites on earth. These stations update and correct errors in the navigational message of the satellites. The user segment is a receiver that receives radio waves from the satellites in orbit. It can determine how far away it is from each satellite by keeping track of the time it takes for a radio wave to travel from the satellite to the receiver (2).

We have come an age when cars were just a simple structure and mechanism, to hi-tech and swanky ones in the present time. With much more attention being paid to passenger comfort, safety, convenience and emission control, we now have cars with superior technology, unthinkable of even three decades back

From features like auto dimming of the rear view mirrors and rear view mirrors automatically turning down as one shifts into reverse gear, to rain sensor vipers, from headlights automatically turning to certain angle on the side of the respective turn to assist better visibility, and wash sprays for the headlights, to display screens informing about fuel consumption and the range it can travel with the remaining fuel.

• Navigation system: This feature has already been in use in certain parts of the world and is soon making its way into other parts. A navigation system comprises of a user screen fitted in the car’s dashboard and once the user has fed in the destination, this feature helps chalk out the route by giving out verbal directions, and hence it reduces the trouble of finding a place to quite an extent. This feature employs global positioning satellite and can also be connected to cellular phones and PDA’s.
• Black box technology: Just like the airplanes have black box fitted to record the events during flight, which are useful in finding details incase of a mishap, a similar technology is now coming to cars as well! With this technology, the details of the car like speed, location of the vehicle etc, at a certain given time can be recorded.
  
  

  Black box in cars

  
  

  1. Radars and cameras for safety: Yes the cars are going to be fitted with radars and cameras that would sense a potential hazard and accordingly warn the driver.
     
     

     Overtaking sensor
     
     

     Collision avoid sensor
  2. Wi-fi hook up’s: A new technology is being developed that would give information on weather, news and certain other important things with the help of wi-fi system to the car users.