It Has Only Taken 30 Years, But The All-Digital Car Is Here

When the first rudimentary computer systems appeared in cars about 35 years ago, they were just that, a couple of rather humongous computer chips with one aim in mind, setting the engine's stoichiometry, or air/fuel mix.

Early Systems

There there three problems back then:

1. The world was still mostly analog (sine waves and things, not digital 1s and 0s)
2. The world of cars had not developed the chips needed for engine control and the industry was trying to rely on mechanical ways to control emission
3. The concept of emissions control wasn't well understood as it was thought that and Exhaust Gas Recycling system and more precise mechanical control would take care of the requirements

As we have found out since, it was a dream world as gas prices were still super-low 85-cent-a-gallon gas was considered expensive after the first gas crisis of 1973 and $1.25-a-gallon gas was considered outrageous after the second in 1980. Add to that the fact that the doomsayers told us the world was running out of oil and production would peak by 2000 (still hasn't yet and new deposits have been found) and then there would be rioting in the streets as gas prices spiked and spiked. Well, the prices have been spiking, but not because of shortage, but because of speculation and the unrest in the oil-producing areas. New sources of oil have been found and have become economically viable, so we're not running out of oil as quickly as painted in 1980. No one was really thinking about global warming then, except some researchers, who were lone voices "in the wilderness," so to speak.

More immediately, the auto industry had to deal with tightening emissions standards and rising fuel economy standards and the only way to do this was use digital circuitry. Fortunately, the electronics industry had come up with circuitry that could begin to withstand the engine environment where temperatures can range from the minus numbers to as high as 300 degrees, as well as chemistry that would - and did - kill earlier, more delicate circuitry. The industry was at a precipice and all it took was one push and it was a ride into the digital world that exists today where engines are essentially closed systems and multiple computers "talk" with one another across your car.

The Digital Auto

Some years ago, a futurist looked at the auto industry and made some predictions that have, for the most part, come true, beginning with the consolidation of the industry from the 25 or 50 major manufacturers to five or six across the world. At the same time, it was predicted that cars would become "thinking" vehicles and that many of the decisions drivers normally made would be taken out of the driver's hands by electronics.

The digital auto would enhance safety through sonar and radar systems and embedded systems in the highway would establish a system of "safety" highways as sensors near the wheels would "talk" with the highway system and all a driver would have to do is program the destination, sit back and the grid would take over - that has yet to happen, although experiments have been tried from time to time.

What has been tried and has been successful is on the safety front, using systems that have been proven in other venues, such as airplanes and submarines, is now appearing in 2011 vehicles enabling them to:

• Parallel park
• Provide blindspot warnings
• Automatically slow down and stop
• Use over-the-air service

Parallel Parking

Take a look at the 2010 Ford Edge or the 2011 Ford Focus and you will find that you don't have to worry about parallel parking anymore. All you need is a curb space big enough and the electronics does the rest. The system relies on active sonar for measurement and active radar to determine distance ahead. It also relies on active steering and braking that allows you to take your hands away from the wheel and it does all of this for you.

That it can accomplish this indicates that at least six major systems are "talking" with one another to enable the parking sequence. The systems include the backup sensor sonar (alarm in most cases); the active radar system that scans the area ahead to determine if your car will ultimately fit, the braking system because the brakes have to be applied in the right sequence; the steering system as the wheel has to be turned at just the right moment; the powertrain as your car has go into reverse and first automatically to finish the maneuver, the ignition system as the vehicle has to shut down once it has been parked.

Blindspot Warnings

Relying on sideview radar or sonar this system constantly scans the area to the sides of your vehicle where your mirror just miss. It begins just after the B-pillar and extends back about 10 feet, to the spot where your rearview picks up cars again. It's this area where cars always seem to hide, just when you want to make a lane change or do some other maneuver. The Blindspot Warning system sets off an alarm if cars are in the area and indicates that there is traffic in a dangerous area. At length, it may not allow you to make the maneuver if it believes the traffic is too heavy, although this is rather heavy-handed.

In this system two systems are used extensively, the active side scan sonar or radar and your car's dash display and alarm system are involved.

Automatic Slow Down And Stop

This used to be the stuff of science fiction, cars that had radar or sonar or a combination of both. Indeed, even laser sensors may be involved, it just depends on the technology, however, most carmakers depend on a form of active front-scan radar that alerts you to the fact that there's traffic ahead. Or that traffic ahead may be slowing or stopped or that you may even be wandering in your lane as when you are tired and should really pull off for a nap.

In this type of system, at least three major systems are involved (possibly four) as the active scanning radar looks ahead and consults its database to find out what it should do if it sees traffic has suddenly slowed or stopped. You may find your brakes applied for your as the safety system activates the brakes. If the system senses that your car may be wandering, it may order your transmission to slow down and may take over the steering chore for you, straightening your vehicle. It may also measure the distance to the shoulder and steer you off the road and out of traffic. In this, the systems that are talking include the forward or forward and sideview radar/sonar/laser systems, the braking system, the transmission and the steering. It's an amazing system.

Over-The-Air

Long used by General Motors as its OnStar system, it is also offered by several other manufacturers with name such as Telematics. The key here is the link you have, via satellite or best-choice line-of-sight radio link. With this over-the-air link, not only are all of the systems of your car monitored, but they also watch for deployment of airbags which indicate a serious crash. If airbag deployment is detected public safety authorities are automatically notified.

If, on the other hand, you've had a serious fender-bender that isn't quite serious enough to warrant the airbags, then you can just hit the alarm button and OnStar talks with you, finds out the situation and dispatches the right resources.

OnStar also offers you directions and will automatically lock and unlock your car, if you've forgotten your keys. It also watches your vehicle and if it is stolen and you report it, they can shut your car down with the flip of a switch.

Just 30 Years

It's amazing what has happened in just 30 years, isn't it. In three decades, we have moved from Ford's then market-leading digital emissions control system to multiplexed system that talk with one another and take and active part in the safety of your vehicle and driving environment.

If this has happened since 1980, who knows what the world will look like in 2031.

Having spent more than 30 years as the dean of Boston's newspaper auto columnists, I have more than a fair to middling knowledge of cars and their problems plus how to drive; how to buy; and how to use the system. Interestingly, I not only spent many years as an automotive writer, but I also spent nearly seven years selling retail either as the Internet Sales Manager for a major Boston area Honda preowned store, as well as serving as a retail salesman on the floor of a couple of domestic dealerships. I can write authoritatively about this topic because I have lived it since my Mom ran a brake rebuilding/relining shop in Boston in the 1950s when I was a kid and I had to go into the office on Saturdays as that was how she brought us up. I have worked on engines and I did the obligatory gas-pump jockey bit as a teen. In other words, I've been around cars and the industry for a long time.