Tag: technologies

A look at how telematics will profoundly revolutionise our everyday lives

Over the centuries, progress has brought about a net improvement in the quality of our lives, and technology – from the creation of the first wheel to the most recent smartphone – has always been the prime driver of societal progress. Today, technology continues to provide new opportunities to improve our life styles, health and much more. And the future is just around the corner: it will be ushered in by self-driving cars.

Self-Driving Vehicles

Self-driving vehicles represent a great technological milestone, the achievement of something science fiction has been touting for decades, but, above all, they will radically improve our quality of life.

The advent of autonomously-driven vehicles will virtually eradicate the stress involved with driving and parking. Smart navigation systems will reduce traffic congestion and decrease noise and air pollution, while the large amounts of space once reserved for parking will be able to be transformed into greener areas for socialisation, improving urban décor. Not to mention the fact that we will be able to use the time previously dedicated to driving and looking for parking spaces to working, resting or enjoying a myriad of leisure activities.

And these benefits will extend far beyond our roads and sidewalks, but into our homes and offices too.

Domotics

As the entire urban scenario around us changes to accommodate self-driving cars, the telematics revolution will also drive a vast improvement in domotics.

Our homes will change radically through smart automation and the introduction of added value services will further improve our quality of life. Domotics promises to expand the adoption of clean, sustainable and efficient energetic consumption. It will simplify our daily lives and actively monitor our houses from a number of hazards including fires, flooding, gas leaks and burglary, as well as alerting the emergency services if necessary.

Health

Telematics and domotics will not only reduce many of the elements that cause stress and pollution, but will also provide for the active monitoring of our health through the ubiquitous introduction of sensors.

Ubiquitous miniaturised sensors in our vehicles, homes and offices, as well as wearables, will unobtrusively keep our vital parameters under control and promote the science of “prevention is the best cure” through a wide range of e-health services seamlessly connected to the greater Internet of Things.

Indeed, the true backbone of technological innovation lies hidden, seamlessly embedded into the infrastructure. It’s the rise not only of smart cars, houses and offices, but of smart communities.

Offices

Our offices have long been considered a “natural” agent of stress, but this is rapidly changing, too.

Work places are becoming more flexible, more collaborative and introducing areas for socialisation, team work and even play. Above all, the trend is to make our offices greener, permeable to natural sunlight and possibly as seamless as possible with the natural environment outside.

This new trend, which is being adopted not only in our offices, but in our homes too, is based on biophilia, the natural human instinct to want to be closer to nature. Indeed, various studies have proven that natural environments increase concentration and acumen. And, of course, natural sunlight, is beneficial to our physical and psychological well-being, too.

New office concepts are also studied to prevent us from remaining stationary at a desk for hours on end, driving us to move around and keep our blood flowing. Indeed, many future office concepts are already envisioning chair-free environments that will literally keep us on our feet.

Wearables

Moreover, in terms of business efficiency, wearables will also increase our concentration by ending the constant interruptions caused by emails, calls, and colleagues. New devices will monitor not only our health, but also our level of concentration and block all but the most important communications until we have completed our task or are ready to take a break.

In short, the emphasis will be on personnel well-being and health as a secret to secure greater productivity and collaboration.

For further information:

• Driving Better Health
• Sidewalks of the Future
• The Smart Home Revolution
• Neighbourhoods of tomorrow? Smart and Green

The Internet of Things means that far more everyday objects are now connected to the internet. Many of these being home objects and appliances, like thermostats, voice-controlled smart speakers and even smart refrigerators that monitor your food supply. These smart sensors play a big role, monitor household comings and goings.

The problem is that all these devices work but are detached from your life outside of the home. This is where the connected car comes in. In the future, the car will connect with ‘home’ acting as a central control hub and be your ‘home away from home’.

With most modern cars being equipped with telematics and other systems to connect to SatNavs and eCall or bCall systems, the infrastructure is there to get more value for money. But how would it work?

If someone is going on a business trip then there’s a host of different arrangements that need to be coordinated. These can all be handled by the connected car. If the person has a flight that leaves at 10am, they should be at the airport by 8am to check-in. They may actually have to wake up at 6am to get on the road in plenty of time.

However, if there’s an accident on the road, then plans need to change. This is the connected car’s job. It will constantly monitor the route to confirm journey times. However, the driver still needs to reach the airport at the same time. But, in order to achieve this, they may need to be up at 5am instead of 6am. Understanding that more time is needed, the car will send an alert to set the alarm clock for earlier. The car will then regulate other devices, switching on the heating and radio to help get the day started, and waking up other appliances around the home. When you transition from home to car, you can also expect to have the same temperate and radio station in your car.

En route to the airport, the car may find out that the airport carpark is full. Fortunately, it can provide alternative parking options and locate a secure carpark with plenty of spaces. The car will then automatically pre-book a parking bay, and redirect there. Simply by using the car as a hub to control everything, the business trip has had a stress-free start, despite the potential for delays.

But the problems may not end there. On the way home, the flight could be delayed. The car would be able to monitor flights and expected arrival times and automatically extend its parking slot to meet the plane’s arrival, setting a domino chain into motion. The heating in the house would be set to come on later, a food order could be postponed or cancelled – a favourite TV programme could even be recorded. If the trip is delayed overnight, the car could set the lights of the house to come on in a pre-set pattern, deterring burglars.

Gone would be the days of sitting in traffic and getting frustrated. There would be plenty of time for journeys, reducing the need to try and switch in and out of lanes and drive dangerously to make up time. Planning and booking a safe, secure parking bay will also reduce the danger of car theft, especially if cars are left overnight at stations or airports.

There may still be some way to go before our cars are playing this central role in our home life as well as driving life. However, with increasing advances in connectivity through the Internet of Things, the day in the life described above may not be as science fiction as it sounds. Using our phones to control things around us is already a reality – we’re not far from letting our cars do it automatically.

How innovative companies thrive on technology transfer

While the natural course of enterprise leads to focus and specialise on specific services and products, the disruptive nature of innovation calls for an open-minded entrepreneurial approach that can swiftly capitalise on new opportunities and technology to maximise the market footprint. Indeed, this how a once niche market like insurance telematics has blossomed and currently has a market outlook forecast at 100 million UBI policies expected to be sold worldwide by 2020.

Intellectual Property

Intellectual property, which refers to creations of the intellect with a monopoly protected by law, is at the core of every modern economy. Intellectual property rights include trademarks, copyrights, patents, industrial design rights and, in some sectors, trade secrets. Traditionally, universities have been the main drivers for new inventions and ground-breaking research.

Technology Transfer

Technology transfer, which plays a critical role in transferring this knowledge to the market in order to create products and services that improve our lives, may be defined as the process of transferring or disseminating knowledge from its point of creation to a larger usage basin. However, technology transfer is not just about reaping ideas from universities and research centres; in fact, knowledge can also be transferred between different sectors in the same company and amongst different companies, too. If technology transfer is absorbed from external sources, as in the latter case, this is often referred to as “open innovation.”

Open Innovation

Open innovation extends well beyond traditional proprietary patents and conventional contractual arrangements for collaborative value creation. Indeed, it embraces new forms of knowledge exchange which are based on informal, non-contractual, flexible and often short-term relationships.

Technology transfer pursued through open innovation differs from traditional cooperative arrangements (such as contract research, research and development partnerships and networks) because it uses different tools to attract relevant knowledge such as crowdsourcing. Open innovation processes are fuelled by customers, suppliers, competitors; the scientific system of university labs and research institutions; public authorities such as patent agents and public funding agencies; and technology consultants, media, and conference organizers.

In a nutshell, technology transfer may be considered synonymous with open innovation. It is cooperative; the opposite of closed innovation in which companies only use ideas generated internally. Indeed, this type of knowledge, which is produced via corporate research labs and closely managed networks of vertically integrated partners, is generally highly protected.

In its outward aperture, open innovation embraces crowdsourcing at large (including co-creation challenges and contests, and a range of co-development opportunities) as well as traditional scouting activities for supplies, talents, patents, technology, partners and start-ups. Indeed, the two often overlap as scouting now often employs on-line crowdsourcing platforms to launch calls or search for new services and products.

Corporate Culture

Moreover, technology transfer – or at least its optimal application – is not only about technology. Scouting activities may identify invaluable technology, but efficient business models must be in place and correctly managed to incorporate new knowledge into a company and make it profitable. It requires a corporate culture that thrives on the injection of new ideas, products and services.

In fact, innovation is synonymous with disruption and companies must be sufficiently flexible, dynamic and far-sighted to adopt new technology that will set new standards for a market sector.

Telematics Insurance

And that’s exactly what happened in 2002, when Fabio Sbianchi conceived and founded Octo Telematics as a pioneering insurance telematics provider for the motor industry. In time, that niche market has adopted a wide range of solutions and added value services to become a prominent sector of today’s insurance industry.

This weekend is Valentine’s Day and love is in the air. In the spirit, we thought we’d share these five reasons why we believe that, despite some initial questions, consumers will fall in love with connected cars this year. After all, at a growth rate 10 times as fast as the overall car market, with estimates that 75% of cars shipped globally will be built with connected capabilities by 2020, it will be hard to get away from this phenomenon. And why would you want to? This is one relationship that will last, no matter how hesitant you are to get it started.

1. Safety and Security – One of the hallmarks to a great relationship, connected cars improve the safety and security of drivers in several ways. Through the ability to predict road conditions based on weather, traffic or other hazards, drivers can avoid unnecessary routes. Further, with advanced crash and claims information, insurers can now help drivers who have been in an accident by offering real time assistance as well as claims processing – so drivers can get back on the road, faster.
2. Better Drivers – Working hard to improve is always a priority. With information on your driving behavior, it’s easy to be conscientious about bad habits and begin to improve. This can be especially useful for teen drivers who are just learning how to drive, making them safer drivers from the beginning. What a loving gift to Mom and Dad!
3. Cost Savings – As you become a better driver, insurers with Usage Based Insurance and telematics programs will provide insurance premiums or discounts based on your particular driving record vs. the average of how “people like you” drive. This can save you money in the long run, as a connected car provides data (to you and the insurer) about your abilities.
4. Car Health – Telematics data can help drivers to know about a problem before it’s a problem. Monitoring car health reduces operating and maintenance costs, maximizes car life and improves reliability and again, safety. Knowing the health of a car allows drivers to be proactive in keeping it in mint condition (less worries when driving long distances, in strange locations, in bad weather, etc.). Knowing your car health not only saves money but also provides peace of mind.
5. Access for Anyone – You don’t have to buy a new car to be connected. With advancements in telematics, many “black box” devices are available to make any car a connected car. Plug and play ports, these devices allow drivers to do all of the above. While new cars will continue to be delivered from manufacturers as connected with all the newest features, older cars can reap the benefits as well.

All in all, the connected car is upon us. Not unlike technologies before it, some misunderstandings and fear accompany its adoption. Remember moving from phone to fax, fax to email, or even online shopping? Security and value were always questions during those early adoption days. Yet those technologies are now a part of our everyday lives – and we believe that connected cars will be, too.