Land Rover is working on a remote control system for its new Defender that would allow low-speed driving from outside the car.
The system is designed for off-road use, allowing owners to negotiate obstacles and tight spots with more precision than if they were inside the car.
Chief product engineer Stuart Frith confirmed the car is “capable of being able to do that in terms of its architecture." He added: "We’ve got as far as understanding how to do it, and we’ve run prototypes as well.”
The technology would be an extension of the Defender’s 3D Scout system, which provides a virtual image of the car from a distance and would require the car’s wearable Activity Key to verify the driver is nearby and in control of the car.
While the new Defender has advanced traction systems, clever software and better visibility with cameras and other sensors, Frith said there's no substitute for checking the surroundings from outside the car to get over obstacles. “If you’re in a tight spot and you’re on your own, you can still get out of the car and ‘spot it' yourself," he commented.
While some cars already on sale can perform low-speed parking manoeuvres by remote control, adding steering to the mix and dealing with challenging terrain makes things more difficult. Legislation is currently the biggest hurdle, with regulatory bodies wanting safety assurances.
Land Rover is also considering allowing owners to live-stream journey footage to the cloud using the Defender’s EVA 2.0 electrical architecture and Online Pack.
Toby Hagon
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How come autocrat took down
How come autocrat took down the article about JLR closing for 8 days after Brexit so quickly?
Why?
Hadn't you read it?
This is still NOT a Defender.
it is an upmarket expensive Discovery with toys for rich people.
Ineos is going to clean up in the Defender market if Land Rover don’t get their act together.
This is how the Defender should have been 10 years ago
The old model was a lovable dinosaur. But it'll be fun to compare market shareof Ineos and the new Defender.
And at some point, you can apologise for being so wrong.
I have heard that SMEG is
I have heard that SMEG is working on a washing machine that can move itself around the house depending on the weather.
Actually I haven't. But it would be more useful.
This sort of nonsense (which now infests all cars) will not be usable or repairable when the vehicle is 10 years old.