One of the things I have been "dreaming" about is car-to-car communications: not only diagnostic information, but stuff like "Where and how much did you pay for gas last?"; "What are you listening to?"; "Where have you been?"; "On average during this time of day how long does it take you go ‘from X to Y’"?; etc.

It seems like things are moving forward …

Innovation newsletter (an excellent resource from John Gehl & Suzanne Douglas) had the following from Network World.

NETWORKING DRIVING AUTOMOTIVE INNOVATION

Carmakers are packing in more electronics than ever, and increasingly relying on shared networks and standard protocols to support internal communications between what used to be stand-alone systems, such as the engine and the braking system.

The result will be such amenities as virtual bumpers that prohibit vehicles from moving if something’s in the way, as well as remote maintenance services that can troubleshoot problems and identify worn out parts before they give out.

"Vehicles are becoming computing platforms that can access any data at any time. A zillion new information services are possible when you add network capability to the vehicle in conjunction with network capability on other devices," says IBM engineer Jim Colson.

The key is developing standards, says an automotive research analyst with ABI: "Car manufacturers across the globe are moving to standards because if they have a single network it cuts down on the number of connectors and controllers required, and it reduces design and production costs."

In addition to hard-wire networking, wireless communications will also play a big role in supporting a host of new navigation and safety services.

Seventeen automobile manufacturers plan to offer Bluetooth-based communications options in their 2005 production vehicles, according to Telematics Research group, and long-term plans for Bluetooth include remote vehicle diagnostics and vehicle-to-vehicle communications.

"The future is not car-to-roadside communications, but car-to-car communications," says automobile research publisher Paul Hansen.

"If you think of each car as a network probe, the car knows how fast it’s going and where it is. In an anti-collision application, a car that slows down to zero could transmit that information backwards to vehicles coming up behind so they can slow down, too." (Network World 23 May 2005)