In-Vehicle Technology

Lab 6.1

Wifi In Vehicles
Wi-Fi has been around for several years as an aftermarket accessory but many major manufacturers now offer some form of Wi-Fi. Ford has been offering Wi-Fi in selected models since 2010 and some form of Internet access is also offered by many other major automakers including General Motors, BMW, Audi, Saab and Chrysler. Autonet Mobile, a California-based firm that touts itself as the "first Internet-based telematics and applications service platform" for the auto market, has over 10,000 US customers using its CarFi service

http://phys.org/news/2011-03-wi-fi-cars-superhighway.html by Rob Lever

Ford Sync Peers Ahead To Video-Streaming Future

Ford Sync's platform already offers hands-free calling, entertainment and navigation services. Its AppLink service allows some apps, like Pandora and real-time traffic data, to be controlled via the dashboard. Future iterations of Ford Snyc could offer in-car video streaming through a provider like Hulu or Netflix .They could be streamed to Iphones, IPads docked inside the car.

http://autos.aol.com/article/ford-sync-peers-ahead-to-video-streaming-future/ by AOL Autos Staff

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles

The most abundant chemical element in the world can power our cars if we are smart about it.
A fuel-cell vehicle is a type of electric vehicle. Like the Nissan Leaf and other EVs, it uses an electric motor to drive the wheels. But rather than draw electricity from heavy batteries that take time to recharge, a fuel cell generates electricity as needed by creating a chemical reaction using hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen is stored onboard the car in tanks as a compressed gas and the oxygen comes from the air. A fuel-cell vehicle can be refueled by pumping hydrogen into its tank at a hydrogen refueling station.
The big reason to want fuel cell vehicles is it