Announced at CES yesterday- a brand new turn is being made in the beloved company, Sony. They announced that their company is branching into creating cars with features that are applicable and necessary for cruising with convenience for both drivers and passengers. The company has been testing the prototype that was displayed at the convention in Las Vegas, for roughly the past year. The features of this new revolutionary vehicular-asset are listed below:
Safety: Safe and secure mobility
The system supports safe driving by recognizing and analyzing the surrounding environment in real time, with sensors installed 360 degrees around the vehicle. These sensors include high-sensitivity, high-resolution, wide dynamic range CMOS image sensors and LiDAR sensors that accurately sense three-dimensional space. In addition, the system provides intuitive driver interaction in conjunction with the vehicle’s sound system and HMI system, so that the driver can accurately judge the status of the surrounding environment, such as the presence of emergency vehicles, even from inside the vehicle. Sony aims to provide greater safety and comfort to all through its sensor and communication technologies, and is currently conducting functional verification tests in Europe toward the release of Level 2+ advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) on public roads.
Adaptability: Getting closer to people and growing together
Time-of-Flight (ToF) sensors are used to provide monitoring functions for driver authentication and to watch over passengers. They also support intuitive gesture and voice commands that are intended to enhance usability of the car interface. Additionally, in order to deliver an environment that suits each user’s preferences, the vehicle will include a new function that allows users to customize the display theme and the acceleration and deceleration sounds of the vehicle.
Vehicle settings, key locks, and user settings can be synchronized by linking the vehicle to the cloud using mobile communication, including 5G communication, which features low-latency, high-capacity, and high-speed capabilities. In addition, since updates are reflected in the vehicle via over the air (OTA), it is possible to provide security and evolve service functions and value-added offerings continuously.
Remote operation: Utilizing Sony’s in-house technologies and knowledge of communication technology and security cultivated through the development of smartphones, Sony has positioned remote operation as an important technology in anticipation of the arrival of the autonomous driving era. To achieve this, Sony conducted driving experiments connecting Japan and Germany with 5G, and is working with its partners to achieve low-latency transmission (video and control signals) and communication control (monitoring and prediction) using the telematics system installed in VISION-S 01.
Entertainment: Enriching the mobility entertainment space
The seat speakers, which create a three-dimensional sound field, and the streaming service compatible with “360 Reality Audio” provide an immersive music experience as if passengers are surrounded by the live performance of a favorite artist.
In addition, to provide a high-quality movie experience, VISION-S includes the fully integrated digital video service “BRAVIA CORE for VISION-S.” The service enables shared or individual video playback on the front panoramic screen and individual rear-seat displays.
Further extending the possibilities of in-vehicle entertainment, gaming capabilities have expanded to being able to play PlayStation® games through a remote connection to a console at home, in addition to the ability to play streaming games through the cloud.
We are thrilled to track the progress of the VISION-S, with high hopes to hear all of the positive feedback that is to contribute to this innovative, league-of-its-own vehicle.
