27/04/2012
A sat-nav for the elderly
“Turn left in 300 yards,” my sat-nav tells me.
Three hundred yards! I don’t know how far that is! I was never very good in maths classes, and now I’m expected to work out how quickly I will reach this 300 yard point while travelling at 40mph in an area I’m unfamiliar with?
It’s not happening.
Thankfully, researchers at Newcastle University are developing a new sat-nav which could help me and many others out no end.
Meant for elderly drivers, this sat-nav will tell the motorist to turn at a certain landmark, like a church or a restaurant, instead of flinging distances at them.
Furthermore, for those motorists who have become worried by other traffic in their old age, the gadget will apparently even work out a route which has no right turns across traffic.
Professor Phil Blythe, the lead researcher, states, “What we are doing is to look at ways of keeping people driving safely for longer, which in turn boosts independence and keeps us socially connected.
“There are a range of solutions that could help and the navigation system is one of the more obvious solutions.
“It would be much simpler than a sat-nav and will try to provide information in ways the older generation can absorb and process.
“It identifies the safest route – such as avoiding right turns and dual carriageways – and uses pictures as turning cues, such as a postbox or public house.”
I’m loving the sound of this GPS system. I have a feeling it won’t be just elderly drivers choosing this new gadget over the less helpful sat-navs.
Three hundred yards! I don’t know how far that is! I was never very good in maths classes, and now I’m expected to work out how quickly I will reach this 300 yard point while travelling at 40mph in an area I’m unfamiliar with?
It’s not happening. Thankfully, researchers at Newcastle University are developing a new sat-nav which could help me and many others out no end.
Meant for elderly drivers, this sat-nav will tell the motorist to turn at a certain landmark, like a church or a restaurant, instead of flinging distances at them.
Furthermore, for those motorists who have become worried by other traffic in their old age, the gadget will apparently even work out a route which has no right turns across traffic.
Professor Phil Blythe, the lead researcher, states, “What we are doing is to look at ways of keeping people driving safely for longer, which in turn boosts independence and keeps us socially connected.
“There are a range of solutions that could help and the navigation system is one of the more obvious solutions.
“It would be much simpler than a sat-nav and will try to provide information in ways the older generation can absorb and process.
“It identifies the safest route – such as avoiding right turns and dual carriageways – and uses pictures as turning cues, such as a postbox or public house.”
I’m loving the sound of this GPS system. I have a feeling it won’t be just elderly drivers choosing this new gadget over the less helpful sat-navs.
Photo © me’nthedogs via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: elderly driver, GPS, motorist, Newcastle University, sat-nav, traffic, travelling
16/04/2012
New Volkswagen Up comes with a slim size treat
If there's one major advantage of city vehicles it has to be the access that they allow to narrow, winding streets. Indeed, the ability to explore routes outside the range of big 4X4's and saloons is one of the greatest lures for purchasers of cars such as the Volkswagen Up!
To celebrate the miniature appeal of their highly popular urban cruiser the German manufacturers have teamed up with the critically acclaimed photographer Harry Cory Wright to produce a book featuring the UK's thinnest roads.
It is hoped that the Volkswagen drivers will take the book with them on journeys around some of the most picturesque towns and cities, rather than resigning it to the coffee table. Just to make this intention clear they have provided GPS coordinates along with each of the fabulous shots.
The Volkswagen Fleet Communications Manager said, “This book illustrates the beautiful scenery surrounding some of the smallest roads of Britain and is a perfect companion for the Up! driver; whether venturing in cities, towns or out in the open countryside air.”
Full details of the featured roads have yet to be disclosed. However, we're betting that Stone Street in Merseyside won't be included. Measuring at only three feet wide it is barely large enough for some model cars to be driven down.
To celebrate the miniature appeal of their highly popular urban cruiser the German manufacturers have teamed up with the critically acclaimed photographer Harry Cory Wright to produce a book featuring the UK's thinnest roads.It is hoped that the Volkswagen drivers will take the book with them on journeys around some of the most picturesque towns and cities, rather than resigning it to the coffee table. Just to make this intention clear they have provided GPS coordinates along with each of the fabulous shots.
The Volkswagen Fleet Communications Manager said, “This book illustrates the beautiful scenery surrounding some of the smallest roads of Britain and is a perfect companion for the Up! driver; whether venturing in cities, towns or out in the open countryside air.”
Full details of the featured roads have yet to be disclosed. However, we're betting that Stone Street in Merseyside won't be included. Measuring at only three feet wide it is barely large enough for some model cars to be driven down.
Photo © ell brown via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: car, coordinates, driver, GPS, road, route, saloon, streets, vehicle, Volkswagen Up
01/09/2011
Goodbye red lights and fuel-inefficiency
Want to drive in a more fuel-efficient way? Hate sitting at red lights? Well, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology may have a way of avoiding red lights and being more fuel-efficient at the same time.
They have come up with an application for smart-phones, called SignalGuru, which, using GPS technology, will help motorists time their approach towards red lights so that they change to green before the driver needs to slow their vehicle to a stop.
This will mean that on top of not having to wait around at traffic lights so often, it will reduce the amount of time the car engine is idling and, as a result, save fuel.
Unfortunately this clever app has only been tested on smart-phones in Massachusetts and Singapore, but the researchers want to make the system commercially available to all drivers in the near future.
Image © http://snow.ipernity.com via Flickr, under Creative Commons Licence
Labels: app, car, engine, fuel-efficient, GPS, idling, motor vehicle, red lights, smart-phone, traffic lights
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