What technology are we still waiting for ?
Discussion
For all the amazing progress we've seen in cars over the years, one thing that continues to irk me is we haven't yet elegantly solved the windscreen problem. Wipers haven't fundamentally changed in a hundred years and make even the most beautiful cars scarred. Surely to buggery we should by now have invented some kind of force field, air cushion and/or effective coating to repel rain. I work in aviation and even the latest Airbuses and Boeings still have them.
Is there anything else we should have engineered out by now or do I just have OCD ?
Is there anything else we should have engineered out by now or do I just have OCD ?
Isn't there some air blast thing that has been shown on a concept car in the last few years; literally, high pressure air is blasted onto the screen to keep it clear of water?
Rear view mirrors, both inernal and external, are a bit old school, I know that camera arrangements have been show on concept cars, I guess they are expensive until they become mainstream, it only needs one manufacturer to do it and the rest will follow.
Rear view mirrors, both inernal and external, are a bit old school, I know that camera arrangements have been show on concept cars, I guess they are expensive until they become mainstream, it only needs one manufacturer to do it and the rest will follow.
HTP99 said:
Isn't there some air blast thing that has been shown on a concept car in the last few years; literally, high pressure air is blasted onto the screen to keep it clear of water?
Rear view mirrors, both inernal and external, are a bit old school, I know that camera arrangements have been show on concept cars, I guess they are expensive until they become mainstream, it only needs one manufacturer to do it and the rest will follow.
The problem with cameras is the loss of depth perception. You are effectively going from stereo to mono vision.Rear view mirrors, both inernal and external, are a bit old school, I know that camera arrangements have been show on concept cars, I guess they are expensive until they become mainstream, it only needs one manufacturer to do it and the rest will follow.
I can't help thinking that rear view cameras are a slightly pointless innovation though, I mean it's just adding a load of technology to duplicate something that already works perfectly well. The downward facing cameras on lorries and vans are good for parking and spotting cyclists but why replace the normal rearview mirror in a car?
Speed 3 said:
For all the amazing progress we've seen in cars over the years, one thing that continues to irk me is we haven't yet elegantly solved the windscreen problem. Wipers haven't fundamentally changed in a hundred years and make even the most beautiful cars scarred.
I understand what you're saying, but sometimes the existing (and old) solutions are the best - taking into account cost/complexity etc.e.g.
Why do we still have steering wheels instead of fly-by-wire joysticks?
Why do we have headlights instead of night-vision cameras? (Yes, I know you'd still need marker lights so pedestrians/cyclists and drivers of older vehicles could still see you)
AW111 said:
HTP99 said:
Isn't there some air blast thing that has been shown on a concept car in the last few years; literally, high pressure air is blasted onto the screen to keep it clear of water?
Rear view mirrors, both inernal and external, are a bit old school, I know that camera arrangements have been show on concept cars, I guess they are expensive until they become mainstream, it only needs one manufacturer to do it and the rest will follow.
The problem with cameras is the loss of depth perception. You are effectively going from stereo to mono vision.Rear view mirrors, both inernal and external, are a bit old school, I know that camera arrangements have been show on concept cars, I guess they are expensive until they become mainstream, it only needs one manufacturer to do it and the rest will follow.
swisstoni said:
When an 'automatic' means a car that drives itself. I'd leave it in manual most of the time but there are times 
when it would be very handy.
That'd be handy. when it would be very handy.Re drink non-driving, you'd still be in charge of the vehicle so would get in trouble. That said, you'd be less likely to be pulled over as you wouldn't be swerving all over the road.
Speed 3 said:
For all the amazing progress we've seen in cars over the years, one thing that continues to irk me is we haven't yet elegantly solved the windscreen problem. Wipers haven't fundamentally changed in a hundred years and make even the most beautiful cars scarred. Surely to buggery we should by now have invented some kind of force field, air cushion and/or effective coating to repel rain. I work in aviation and even the latest Airbuses and Boeings still have them.
Is there anything else we should have engineered out by now or do I just have OCD ?
We had a fella from a company come to show us a hydrophobic coating that could be applied to windscreens. Apparently, it's stuff that's used on Yachts that don't have wipers. He assured me you could drive on the motorway without the wipers on and that the rain would just blow off. I tried it and it worked quite well. Is there anything else we should have engineered out by now or do I just have OCD ?
kambites said:
T0MMY said:
I can't help thinking that rear view cameras are a slightly pointless innovation though
Removing wing mirrors would be of significant benefit to aerodynamics and hence fuel economy. Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff