The majority of modern cars offer voice and touch screen technology to adjust vehicle climate, find a route to your destination, or control your radio. If they don’t, there are plenty of products out there that can allow this to occur in an older vehicle (but not too old). This new interface has been given the name “infotainment,” from the obvious combination of information and entertainment. Gone are the days of simple manual controls for heat and radio and hello to the days where your car mimics your behaviors.
Now, automotive supplier Visteon has developed a system that does all of that for you. Named HABIT (Human Bayesian Intelligence Technology), the infotainment system uses artificial intelligence to learn a driver’s behaviors, preferred temperatures, and music choices to create a more intuitive driving experience.
The HABIT system is capable of continuously learning a driver’s preferences and combining those preferences with other factors, such as time of day and outdoor temperatures, to make certain automatic adjustment on the driver’s behalf. For example, if you use your heated seats on days that are below 40 degrees, HABIT will automatically heat your seats when the temperature passes that threshold. HABIT can also learn a driver’s taste in music, even if you are away from the vehicle, by accessing your phone or tablet’s playlist. Short of driving the car for you, HABIT does everything else. All you have to do is drive, which is the most enjoyable part of being in the car. With HABIT, you can go on an adventure without having to take the time to make a special playlist.
In sum, this new HABIT system has the ability to “remember” your habits and almost keep them up for you. As explained by Visteon innovation manager Shadi Mere, “The goal of HABIT is to become an experience that improves each time the driver uses the ever-aware system. The HABIT cockpit concept demonstrates how your car can learn and grow with you over its lifetime.”
This type of artificial learning intelligence is a true characteristic of what we can expect in the coming years, not only in the auto market, but translated through many others, such as electronics, appliances and possibly everything in your house. Eventually we may not have to do anything – just enjoy being.
