According to Dr. Assaf Adi, Senior Director of the Internet of Things and Wearable Computing at IBM's research laboratory in Haifa, a combination of augmented reality with voice communication and conversation capabilities make it possible to "import" information from outside the car and use it inside - in the right context for the needs of the driver and the passenger at the same time
Panasonic presents a cognitive information and entertainment platform for cars, which combines the special capabilities of the Watson supercomputer from IBM. The platform leverages Watson's cognitive abilities, including natural language processing and understanding human speech - in order to answer questions presented by the driver and passengers, provide recommendations and directions for the road. In addition, the new platform includes electronic commerce capabilities, which allow making purchases from the vehicle - and making the most of the travel time. In the future, it will also be possible to integrate tools for monitoring the condition of the vehicle and improving road safety.
According to Dr. Assaf Adi, senior manager in the field of the Internet of Things and wearable computing at IBM's research laboratory in Haifa: "Voice communication with the vehicle is the most natural and safest means of interaction while driving. By speaking, the driver can activate the vehicle's systems, communicate with a digital personal assistant, and receive information about the road or destination without taking their hands off the wheel and eyes off the road. Adi adds that "a combination of augmented reality with voice communication and conversation capabilities make it possible to "import" information from outside the car and use it inside it - in the right context for the needs of the driver and the passenger at the same time. The combination of conversational interaction with information presented through augmented reality technology is a very effective combination."
Panasonic's new system combines the application programming interfaces (API) and special capabilities for IBM's Watson - through IBM's Bloomix cloud environment. The list of Watson services and applications on which the new entertainment and information system relies includes natural language processing and cataloging, text-to-speech and speech-to-text conversion, and tools for personalizing the user experience. Working in the Bloomix environment also makes it possible to integrate weather data and tweets received from Twitter into the media solution for drivers - and provide additional insights into the user experience.
A digital concierge with a smart look
At the same time as the launch of the new system, IBM and Panasonic revealed another collaboration, focused on the development of a "concierge" service - designed to help improve the user's experience and meet their expectations during travel and hotel stays.
The new service is based on a digital mirror, which can be installed in hotels and tourist and hospitality sites. Through the mirror, the guest or tourist can conduct a dialogue with the digital personal assistant, and quickly receive information about the hotel and its services, entertainment and shopping options, means of transportation, the weather forecast and other issues related to their stay.
One response
Engaging in e-commerce while driving doesn't seem like a good idea. I would suggest that they start with the same "road safety improvement" that they promise for the future (for example: smart monitoring of irresponsible driving - similar to what mobileye does but with more intelligence and friendly interaction with the driver instead of the annoying beeps).