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BMW has announced that it will place engineers in IBM's new Munich laboratory to work alongside the computing giant's researchers. The plan is that IBM's 'Watson Internet of Things' can be incorporated into future BMW models, bringing with it a computerised awareness of the outside world and a human-car interface that can not only talk with the driver in conversational language, but can also learn about an individual driver's likes, needs and preferences.
It's part of a USD$3-billion global investment by IBM to take the computing power of its Watson system which is designed to draw together huge amounts of data drawn from millions of devices - cars, phones, laptops, tablets and many more - and turn that data into useable, useful information for the individual user, the so-called Internet of Things.
The co-location of BMW engineers in IBM's new USD$200-million laboratory (what IBM calls a collaboratory) is a first for the industry, putting vehicle designers alongside software geniuses to design vehicle systems from the ground up.
Niklaus Waser, Head of Watson IoT Europe and Leader of Watson IoT Center, Munich told CompleteCar that: "here, something is happening that is real and that is changing the industry. The reality is even greater than what we had hoped to achieve. We are bringing researchers and engineers together and it's going to improve the driving experience."
Although there is much talk of AI, it doesn't mean the sort of scary Artificial Intelligence of which Hollywood movies are so keen. There is no plan to put a HAL 9000 or T800 Terminator into your car. Instead, in this instance, AI stands for Augmented Intelligence, or a Waser puts it "the machine does not take over, it's about supporting the human to make better decisions.'
That starts with the interface between the car and the driver. Right now, we have to touch screens, push buttons or wade our way through tiresomely cloth-eared voice recognition systems to communicate our needs and wishes to our cars. IBM's Watson setup will, apparently, do away with that, allowing you to communicate with your car in flowing, colloquial language, not a menu of pre-set phrases. Ideas for the system include loading the car's entire user manual into the computer so that the driver can ask questions on the fly such as which side the fuel filler is on or how best to set the car up for their needs. The system is also designed to think on your behalf, so that if it sees that it's raining, then it knows to suggest other routes to work because traffic will get snarled up, or to re-direct you to a covered parking space. There is even the prospect of a car 'self-healing' - by which IBM's researchers mean that it can diagnose any faults in the electronics system on the go and download software patches without you ever having to worry about it. Sadly, it can't fix a mechanical defect, but it can detect them and order a mobile repair service to come and attend to the car while you work or shop.
Dr. Sean McKenna is Senior Research Manager at IBM's Ireland Research Lab, in Damastown, just outside Dublin, and he told CompleteCar that Dublin's input into the project is crucial.
"If you look at current voice control systems, it's very much Question & Answer, but we want to create a system that goes much deeper than that, so that Watson can not just tell you what the weather is going to be like, but what impact that weather has on you and your journey. And that's the sweet spot in all this for the Dublin Lab because they're one of the global leaders in Smart City technology and analysis.They've done a lot of work on traffic and traffic flows and so on with Dublin City Council and all of that is feeding into the cars we have here and the wider programme."
The cars are four BMW i8 hybrid supercars, which will be placed with the IBM Munich lab and which will allow the BMW engineers and IBM researchers to immediately prototype their systems in a working, functional car. "My feeling is that we spend a lot of time in our cars" says McKenna. "Almost as if the car is an exo-skeleton, so what we're doing here is going to make the exo-skeleton work so much better for the driver, and we have these i8 exo-skeletons to work with and that's obviously really exciting for us."
Waser won't be drawn on what this means for future BMW models, but there is a strong suggestion that the plans go way beyond making a better voice recognition system. "We're not in the business of building cars" Waser told The Irish Times. "And I cannot make any announcements for BMW, but this is the start, the centre is brand new, so there is more to come."
Speaking at the announcement of the BMW co-operation, Harriet Green, Global Head of IBM's Watson IoT business said that: "Watson is transforming how people interact with the physical world - helping to create safer, more efficient and personal experiences at home, at work and on the road. With this agreement, our companies will work together to lay the foundations so that BMW's drivers can benefit from Watson's conversational and machine learning capabilities. Our insight shows that while the car will remain a fixture in personal transportation, the driving experience will change more over the next decade than at any other time of the automobile's existence."