Virginia Tech Team Develops Laser-equipped Buggy That The Blind Can Drive

A team of Virginia Tech students has created a vehicle that can actually be driven by blind individuals. Equipped with an array of laser range finders, the dirt buggy offers an instant voice command interface and a other related systems that enable drivers to respond to whatever the vehicle "sees." It seems the technology is destined for vehicles for the rest of us but the fact that it has been tested by a non-sighted driver does prove that the technology in fact works.

Ford Addressing Parents Concerns With MyKey

Ford Motor Company has announced a new feature to be offered in the 2010 model of the Ford Focus. MyKey will provide safety features aimed at keeping teen aged drivers safe and responsible behind the wheel of the family car. With the MyKey feature installed the vehicle will alert the driver at various speeds ranging from 72 kilometres an hour to 130 kilometres an hour, the upper maximum the driver would be allowed to drive. The system also alerts the driver when the vehicle is running low on fuel and can limit the volume of the stereo. Not surprisingly, parents surveyed loved the idea while teens hated it... but then again who's paying for the car, the insurance, the gas, etc...

Sympatico / MSN story

Toyota successfully tests next gen fuel-cell vehicle

Toyota took two fuel-cell powered vehicles for on a road trip from Osaka to Tokyo on Friday. The vehicles arrived in Tokyo with about 30% of it's fuel remaining after the 560 km trip, this represents a total capacity of about 770 km between fill-ups, and about 25% more efficiency than current models. The CBC's report says "Fuel-cell cars are widely viewed as the most promising pollution-free vehicles for the future because they are powered by electricity generated through the chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen and emit only water as a byproduct." I am a big believer in the move towards greener devices, but living in a northern climate, I wonder how well these vehicles perform in cold weather?